LIBRARY 


THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

SANTA  BARBARA 

PRESENTED  BY 


MRS.    J.    M.    DILLMAN 


en 

UJ 

OS 

u 

p 
z 

< 

a 

o 

UJ 
DC 
UJ 

^ 

CD 
H 

z 

< 

S 
< 
I 
Z 

CD 

b 
-J 

O 

UJ 

i: 


UJ 

uj' 
O 
< 

z 

< 

< 

CD 
UJ 

Z 
H 


The^ook  of  History 

H  Ibistor^  of  all  IRations 

FROM  THE  EARLIEST  TIMES  TO  THE  PRESENT 

WITH    OVER   8000    ILLUSTRATIONS 

WITH  AN  INTRODUCTION  BY 

VISCOUNT   BRYCE,  p.c.  d.c.l.,  ll.d.,  f.r.s. 


CONTRIBUTING   AUTHORS 


W.  M.  Flinders  Petrie,  LL.D.,  F.R.S. 

UNIVKRSITY  COLT.KCK,    LONDON 

Hans  F.  Helmolt,  Ph.D. 

EDITOR,  GERMAN  "HISTORY  OF  THE  WORLD" 

Stanley  Lane-Poole,  M.A.,  Litt.D. 

TRINITY  COLLEGE,   DUBLIN 

Robert  Nisbet  Bain 

ASSISTANT   LIBRARIAN,   BRITISH   MUSEUM 

Hugo  Winckler,  Ph.D. 

UNIVERSITY   OF   BERLIN 

Archibald  H.  Sayce,  D.Litt.,  LL.D. 

OXFORD   UNIVERSITY 

Alfred  Russel  Wallace,  LL.D.,  F.R.S. 

AUTHOR,   "MAN'S  PLACE  IN  THE  UNIVERSE" 


Holland  Thompson,  Ph.D. 

THE  COLLEGE  OF  THE  CITY  OF   NEW  YORK 

W.  Stewart  Wallace,  M.A. 

UNIVERSITY   i)V  TORONTO 

Maurice  Maeterlinck 

ESSAYIST,  POET,   PHILOSOPHER 

Dr.  Emile  J.  Dillon 

UNIVERSITY   OF  ST.    PETERSBURG 

Arthur  Mee 

EDirOK,   "IHE   ROOK   OF   KNOWLEDGE" 

Sir  Harry  H.  Johnston,  K.C.B.,  D.Sc. 

LA  IE  COMMISSIONER   FOR   UGANDA 

Johannes  Ranke 

UNIVERSITY   OF   MUNICH 


Sir  William  Lee- Warner,  K.C.S.I.  K.  G.  Brandis,  Ph.D. 

MEMBER  OF  COUNCIL  OF   INDIA  UNIVERSITY   OF  JENA 

And  many  other  Specialists 

Volume  I 

MAN  AND  THE  UNIVERSE 

The  World  before  History 

The  Great  Steps  in  Man's  Development 

Birth  of  Civilisation  and  the  Grow^th  of  Races 

Making  of  Nations  and  the  Influence  of  Nature 

JAPAN 

The  Country  and  the  People 


NEW  YORK   .  .   THE  GROLIER  SOCIETY 
LONDON  .  THE  EDUCATIONAL  BOOK  CO. 


EDITORIAL   AND  CONTRIBUTING   STAFF 


OF 


THE  BOOK  OF  HISTORY 


Bt.  Hon.  Viscount  Bryce,  F.B.S. 

Formerly     British     Ambassador     to     the     United 
States,   Author  of   "  The  American   Com- 
monwealth " 

Professor  i:.  Bay  Iiankester,  F.B.S. 

President    British    Association,    1906-7;     I'ast    Di- 
rector   of    South    Kensington    Museum    of 
Natural  History 

Dr.  Alfred  Bussel  Wallace,  F.B.S. 

Co-discoverer  with  Darwin  of  the  Theory  of  Nat- 
ural  Selection;     Author  of  "Man's   Place 
in   the    Universe  " 

Dr.  William  Johnson  SoUas,  F.B.S. 

Professor   of   Geology  at   Oxford   University 
Dr.  W.  M.  Flinders  Petrie,  F.B.S. 

Professor     of     Egyptology,      University      College, 

London;     Founder    of    British    School    of 

Archaeology   in  Egypt 

Professor  Wm.  Boyd  Dawkins,  F.B.S. 

Professor     of     Geology     at     Victoria     University, 
Manchester;    Author  of  "  Early  Man  in  Britain 

Frederic   Harrison,  U.A. 

Hon.     Fellow    and     formerly     Tutor    of    Wadham 

College,    Oxford;     Vice-President    of    the 

Royal    Historical    Society 

Dr.   Archibald   H.   Sayce 

Professor  of  Assyriology  at   Oxford   University 
Sir    Harry    H.    Johnston,    X.C.B. 

Doctor  of  Science  of  Cambridge   University;     late 
Commissioner  and  Consul-Gencral  for  Uganda 

Dr.  J.  Holland  Bose 

Cambridge   University    Lecturer    on    Modern    His- 
tory ;     Author    of    "  Development    of    the 

European   Nations  " 

Dr.    Stanley   Iiane-Foole 

Professor  of  Arabic  at  Trinity   College,  Dublin 
Sir   John   Knox   Iiangrhton 

Professor   of   Modern    History    at    King's    College, 

London   University;     Editor   of    Lord 

Nelson's  Despatches 

Oscar  BrowningTi  M.A. 

Fellow  of  King's  College,  Cambridge;    University 
Lecturer  in   History 

Professor  Bonald  M.  Burrows 

Professor  of  Greek  at  University  College  of  South 
Wales  ;    Author   of  "  Discoveries   in   Crete 

David  Qeorg-e  Hogfarth,  M.A. 

Director    of    Cretan    Exploration    Fund    and    Past 
Director  of  the  British  School  at  Athens 

Herbert    Paul,   M.P. 

Author  of   "A   History   of  Modern   England" 
Sir  Bobert   K.   Douglas 

Professor  of  Chinese  at  King's  College,  University 

of    London ;    late    Keeper   of    Oriental 

Books,    British   Museum 

Dr.   Hugro    Winckler 

Professor   of    History   and    Oriental    Languages   at 
the    University    of    Berlin 

Sir   William   lee-Warner,    K.C.S.I. 

Member     of     the     Council     of     India;      Formerly 
Scholar  of  St.  John's  College,   Cambridge 

Dr.  B.  J.   Dillon 

Author  and   Journalist;    Master  of  Oriental   Lan- 
guages   at  "the    University    of    St.    Petersburg 

William  Bomaine  Paterson,  M.A. 

Author  of   "  The   Nemesis  of   Nations  " 

W.   Warde   Fowler,   M.A. 

Scholar  and   Fellow   of    Lincoln    College,    Oxford; 

Author  of  "  The  City- State  of  the  Greeks 

and    Romans  " 


Dr.    H.    F.    Helmolt 

Author     of     "  German     History  "     and     Editor    of 
the  German   "  History   of   the   World  " 

Professor  Xonrad  Haebler 

Of   the   Imperial    Library   of    Berlin 

Professor   Bichard   Mayr 

Of    the    Vienna    Academy    of    Commerce 

Arthur  Mee 

Editor  of  The  Book  of  Knowledge. 

Professor   Budolf  Scala 

Of  the   Imperial   University   of   Vienna 

Professor  Karl  Weule 

Director  of  the  Leipzig  Museum  of  Anthropology 

Professor  Wilhelm  Walther 

Of  the   University   of   Rostock 
Arthur  Christopher  Benson,  M.A. 

Fellow   of  Magdalene   College,   Cambridge ;    Editor 
of  The  Correspondence  of  Oueen  \  ictoria 

Major  Martin  Hume 

Lecturer    in    Spanish    History    and    Literature    at 
Pembroke    College,    Cambridge 

Bobert  Nisbet   Bain 

Traveller   and    Historian;     Assistant   Librarian   at 
the  British  Museum 

Bichard   Whiteingf 

Author  of  "  The  Life  of  Paris  " 
His  Excellency  Max  von  Brandt 

Ex-German  Ambassador  to  China  and  Minister  in 
Japan 

Francis   H.   Skrine 

Traveller  and   Explorer;     late   of   the   Indian   Civil 

Service 

Holland  Thompson,  Ph.  D. 

The  College  of  the  City  of   New  York. 
Dr.    Archdall    Beid,    F.B.S.B. 

Author  of  "  The   Principles  of  Heredity  " 

Arthur   Di6sy 

Founder  of  the  Japan   Society ;    Author  of  "The 

New  Far  East 

Dr.    X.    G.    Brandls 

Director   of   the   University    Libraries   at   Jena 
Thomas  Hodgkin,  D.C.Ii. 

Author  of  "  A   I'olitical   History  of  England  " 

Professor  Joseph  Xohler 

Professor  of  Jurisprudence  at  Berlin   University 

Angus  Hamilton 

Traveller    and    Correspondent    in    the    Far    East; 

Author   of   "  Afghanistan  " 

J.  G.  D.  Campbell,  M.A. 

Late    Educational    Adviser    to    the    Government   of 
Siam 

W.  B.  Carles,  C.M.G. 

Geographer;      late     British     Consul     at     Tientsin, 
China 

Professor  Johannes  Banke 

Professor  of   Anthropology,    Physiology,   and   Nat- 
ural   History    at    Munich 

W.  S.  Wallace,  M.  A. 

University   of   Toronto. 

Hon.  Bernhard   B.  Wise 

Scholar   of    Queen's    College,    Oxford:     Ex-Attor- 
ney-General    of    New    South    Wales 

H.  W.   C.   Davis,  M.A. 

Fellow  of  Balliol   College,   Oxford 


CONTENTS  OF  VOLUME  I 


THE    SAURIAN    AGE  . 


FRONTISPIECE 


FIRST  GRAND   DIVISION 

MAN  AND  THE  UNIVERSE 

Editorial  Introduction 

Plan  of  the  History 

Plan  of  First  Grand  Division 

A  View  across  the  Ages 

Summary  of  World  History 

Chronology  of  10,000  Years 

Time-table  of  the  Nations     . 

Contemporary  Figures  in  History 

The  Beginning  of  the  Earth 

Four  Periods  of  the  Earth's  Development 

Geological  Clock  of  the  World's  Life 

Hov/  Life  became  possible  on  Earth 

Scene  from  the  Prehistoric  World 

Beginning  of  Life  on  the  Earth 

How  Man  obtained  Mastery  of  the  Earth 

THE  WORLD  BEFORE  HISTORY 

Prehistoric  Man  attacking  Cave  Bears 
The  Wonderful  Story  of  Drift  Man 
The  Appearance  of  Man  on  the  Earth 
Life  of  Man  in  the  Stone  Age 
Primitive  Man  in  the  Past  and  Present 
The  Home  Life  of  Primitive  Folk   . 
When  History  was  dawning 

THE  GREAT  STEPS  IN  MAN'S  DEVELOPMENT 

The  Material  Progress  of  Mankind 

Beginnings  of  Commerce       .  •  •  •  • 

The  Higher  Progress  of  Mankind     ,  .  .  • 

BIRTH  OF  CIVILISATION  AND  GROWTH  OF  RACES 

Seven  Wonders  of  Ancient  Civilisation 

Rise  of  Civihsation  in  Egypt  .  .  .  • 

Rise  of  Civihsation  in  Mesopotamia 


PAI'.F. 
I 

3 
6 

7 

60 

.61 

74 
■  78 
79 
89 
90 
91 
Plate  facing  96 

99 
.      108 


Plate  facing  114 

115 
127 
132 

145 
164 

175 


Plate  facing  192 
.      203 


225 
233 
259 


THE  BOOK  OF  HISTORY 

PAGE 

Rise    of    Civilisation    in    Europe         .........  281 

The   Triumph   of   Race 299 

Alphabet   of   the    World's    Races 311 

Little  Gallery  of  Races 2^3 

Types  of  the  Chief  Races  of  Mankind         ........  349 

Ethnological    Chart    of    the    Human    Race         .......  352 


MAKING    OF    NATIONS    AND    THE    INFLUENCE    OF    NATURE 

Birth     and     Growth    of    Nations 

Land  and  Water  and  Greatness  of  Peoples 

Environment  and  the  Life  of  Nations 

The  Size  and   Power  of  Nations 

The  Future  History  of  Man 


353 
377 
387 
399 
404 


SECOND  GRAND   DIVISION 

THE  FAR  EAST 


Map    of   the    Far    East         .  .  .  . 

Plan    of   the    Second    Grand    Division 
Interest  and   Importance   of  the   Far    East 


406 
408 
409 


JAPAN 


COUNTRY    AND    PEOPLE 

Great    Dates    in    Japan 

The  Empire  of  the  Eastern  Seas 

Map    of    Japan 

Qualities  of  the  Japanese   People 


416 
417 

432 
433 


VI 


LIST  OF  SPECIAL  PLATES  IN  THE 
BOOK  OF  HISTORY 


The   Saurian  Age      ....... 

Scene  from  the  Prehistoric  World:  Early  Ice  Age 

Prehistoric  Men  Attacking  the  Great  Cave  Bears 

The  Beginnings  of  Commerce 

Carrying   Off   an    Emperor 

Buddha,   "  The   Light  of  Asia  " 

Four  Famous   Figures  in   Chinese  History 

The    Colour   of   India        .... 

Gems  of  Indian  Architecture  . 

Indian    Temples       ..... 

Nineveh  in  the  Days  of  Assyria's  Ascendan 
Two   Indian   Scenes  .... 

Spring  Carnival  at  a  Tibetan  Monastery 

The   Pyramids   of  Abusir 

Destruction  of  Jerusalem  by  the  Romans 

Palace  of  an  Assyrian   King   . 

The  Sphinx      ..•••. 

Alexander,  the  World   Conqueror    . 

The  Acropolis  of  Athens 

An  Arab  Storyteller  .... 

Theodora,   the    Byzantine    Empress 
Glimpse  of  the  Life  in  a  Turkish  Harem 
Primitive    Justice      ..... 

Thaddeus  Reyten  at  the  Diet  of  Warsaw 
Roland      ....... 

Prince  Arthur  and  Hubert 

Venerable  Bede  Dictating  His  Translation  of 

"The  Vigil":  A  Knight  of  the  Middle  Ages 

Alfred,  the  Hero  King  of  England  . 

King  John  Granting  Magna  Charta 

Crusaders    Sighting   Jerusalem 

Wolsey's  Last  Interview  with  Henry  VIII 

Charles  I  on  His  Way  to  Execution 

Charles   II   Visiting   Wren 

Napoleon  the   Great  .... 

"  Peace  with   Honour "    . 

The  French  Soldiers'  Unrealised  Dream  of  V 

Recessional         ...... 

The  Conqueror's  Gift  to  London 

King  Edward  VII 

Clio,  "  The  Muse  of  History  "... 
Flags  that  Fly  in  the  Four  Winds  of  Heaven 
Statue  of  Liberty       ...... 

Hope  ........ 


the  Gospel  of  St 


tory 


PAGE 

Frontispiece,  Vol.     i 

Facing         96 

114 

192 

Frontispiece,  Vol.     2 

Facing        562 

754 

Frontispiece,  Vol.     3 

.     Facing      1154 

"  1 196 

Frontispiece,  Vol.     4 

.      Facing      1364 

1436 

Frontispiece,  Vol.     5 

.     Facing      i860 

1956 

.  "  1996 

Frontispiece,  Vol.     6 

Facing      2504 

Frontispiece,  Vol.     7 

Facing      2906 

2994 

Frontispiece,  Vol.     8 

Facing      3282 

.  "  3484 

Frontispiece,  Vol.     9 

John     .     Facing      3716 

3788 

3834 

.    "     3865 

Frontispiece,  Vol.   10 

Facing      4168 

4340 

Frontispiece,  Vol.  ir 

Facing     4636 

Frontispiece,  Vol.   12 

Facing     5104 

Frontispiece,  Vol.   13 

.     Facing     5464 

Facing     5614 

Frontispiece,  Vol.  14 

.      Facing     5874 

Frontispiece,  Vol.   15 

Facing  Index 


LIST  OF  MAPS 

APPEARING  IN  THE  BOOK  OF   HISTORY 


The    World    as    Known    to    its    First 

Historian        .....  8 

Shifting  of  the  Centre  of  the   World'.s 

Commerce      .....  28 

How     the     Mediterranean     has     Given 

Place  to  the  Atlantic     ...  29 

The  First  Maps    .....  51 

Modern   Representation   of  the  World  52 

The   Europeanisation  of  the  World     .  55 

The  Shaping  of  the  Face  of  the  Earth  85 

How    Mountain    Ranges    were    formed  87 
Europe   Before  the   British   Isles  were 

Formed  .  .  .  .  .118 

The  Submerged  Lands  of  Europe       .  119 

Europe  in  the   Ice  Age        .          .          .  155 

Egypt  in  Three  Periods       .          .          .  243 

Fiabylonia     ......  260 

Sea   Routes  of  Ancient  Civilisation      .  283 

Land    Routes    of    Ancient    Civilisation  284 
How      Civilisation      Spread      through 

Europe             .....  359 

The  Expansion  of  White  Races  .          .  361 

The  Island  that  Rules  the  Sea      .          .  378 

Oceans    of  the   World          .          .          .  383 
Effect    of    Climate    on    the    Course    of 

History            .....  391 

Political    Expansion     ....  396 

Relation    of    Rivers    and    Sea    to    the 

Civilisation   of  Countries        .          .  397 
South  America 
Africa                                           . 
Europe 
The  Far  East,  and  Australia,  Oceania 

and    Malaysia          ....  406 

The  Island  Empire  of  Japan       .          .  432 

Japan  in  the   Fifth   Century          .          .  457 

Siberia          ......  634 

.Movement  of  the  Peoples  of  Siberia     .  656 

Russia's  Advance  in  Western  Asia       .  676 

Growth  of  Russia  in  the  Far  East      .  677 

The   Trans-Siberian    Line     .          .          .  692 

The    Chinese    Empire             .          .          .  708 

Korea  and  its   Surroundings        .          .  858 

The   Malay  Archipelago       .          .  886 

Islands  of  Oceania       ....  947 

New   Zealand        .....  986 

.•Kustralia  and  Tasmania                  .          .  loio 
Britain    Contrasted   with    Australia      .  1012 
South-east  Australia,  Indicating  Prod- 
ucts        ......  1013 

Bed  of  the  Pacific  Ocean                .          .  1102 

The    Middle    East         ....  1120 

Modern  India       .         .         .         .         .1161 


India  in   1801 

Bed   of   the    Indian   Ocean   and   China 
Sea         .... 

Suez    Canal  ... 

Mountain     Systems     In     and    Around 
Tibet      .... 

The  Approach  of  Lhasa 

Early    Empires   of    the    Ancient    Near 
East        ...... 

Later    Empires    of   the    Ancient    Near 
East        ...... 

Ancient  Empires  of  Western  Asia 

Modern  Africa      .... 

Races  and  Religions  of  Africa 

Natural    Products   of  Africa 

Basin  of  the  River  Nile 

Delta  of  the  River  Nile 

Utica  as  it  Was   .... 

The    Remains    of    Utica 

Ancient  States  of  Mediterranean  North 
Africa  .... 

Niger  River  and  Guinea  Coast     . 

Great  Britain  in  South  Africa 

Basin    of   the    Zambesi 

Basin  of  the  Congo 

General  Map  of  Europe 

Geographical  Connection  of  the  Medi 
terranean    Coasts   . 

Ancient  Greece    .... 

World  Empire  of  .Alexander  the  Great 

Italy  in  the  First  Century  B.C. 

The  Roman  Empire 

Origin  of  the  Barbaric  Nations   . 

Principal  Countries  of  Eastern  Europe 

World's    Great    Empires    Between    T/J 
and  814  A.D.         .         .         .         . 

Turkey  and  Surrounding  Countries  in 
the  14th  and  17th  Centuries  . 

Historical  Maps  of  Poland  and  West- 
ern Russia      .  .  .  .  . 

Western    Europe   in    the   Middle   Ages 

Europe  During  the  Revolutionary  Era 

Modern   Europe    . 

Britain's  Maritime  Enterprise 

The    British    Empire   in    1702 

The    British    Empire   in    1909 

The  Atlantic  Ocean 

South   America  in   the  Sixteenth    Cen- 
tury       .... 

South  America  as  it  is  To-day 

North  Pole,  with   routes  of   Explorers 

South    Pole  ... 

North  America  . 


PACE 

1266 

1419 
1434 

1457 
1505 

1562 

1563 
1582 
2001 
2005 
2009 
2022 
2024 
2188 
2189 

2191 
2229 
2322 
2332 
2347 
2356 

^m 
2482 
2561 
2621 
2738 
2797 
2894 

2934 
3082 

3220 

4138 
4636 
4788 
5440 
5462 
5463 
5656 

5915 
5983 
6014 
604s 
6431 


This  is  the  story  of  the  earth  from  the  first  thing  we  know  of  it  to  the 
time  in  which  wc  live.  It  is  the  story  of  man  from  the  first  thing  we  know 
of  him   to   the    last    thought  that   the    vision    of    modern    science    can    suggest 


HTHERE  is  no  need  here  to  discuss  the 
question  how  far  it  is  possible  to  write  a 
universal  histor}',  or  on  what  lines  such  a 
history  should  proceed.  These  points  may 
well  be  left  where  Lord  Bryce  leaves  them 
in  his  introduction  to  this  book.  Nor  need 
we  consider  what  history  is  ;  the  plain  man 
may  be  left  to  make  up  his  own  mind  as  to 
that  while  the  philosophers  are  making  up 
theirs.  A  word  may  be  said,  however,  of 
the  plan  and  purpose  of  this  work,  especially 
of  that  distinction  of  it  which  is  at  once  the 
ground  of  its  appeal  and  its  justification. 

A    UNIVERSAL    HISTORY    OF    THE    UNIVERSE 

It  is  a  commonplace  to  say  of  a  great 
work  that  it  is  unique,  and  there  would  at 
first  sight  seem  to  be  peculiar  presumption 
in  making  such  a  claim  for  a  History  of 
the  World.  It  may  be  claimed,  however, 
without  any  fear  of  contradiction,  that  this 
work  has  no  rival  in  the  English  language. 

There  have  been  histories  of  the  world 
before  ;  there  are  available  in  large  numbers 
histories  of  all  countries  well  worthy  of 
attention  ;  but  there  is  not,  and  it  may  be 
doubted  if  there  has  ever  been  attempted 
before,  a  scientific  World-History.  This 
work  is,  as  far  as  it  can  possibly  be  in 
the  present  state  of  knowledge,  a  universal 
history  of  the  universe. 

SCIENCE    AND    HISTORY 

That  is  a  far  reaching  claim  to  make,  but 
a  mere  glance  through  the  names  of  those 
whose  services  have  been  enlisted  for  the 
work  will  make  its  basis  clear.  The  con- 
tributors   include    some    of     the    foremost 


students  of  science.  Many  men  of  eminence 
whose  names  do  not  usually  come  into 
historical  works  will  be  found  here.  Their 
function  may  be  described  as  holding  the 
Lamp  of  Science  up  to  History.  It  is  for 
these  authorities  to  read  the  story  of  the  earth 
and  to  tell  the  plain  man  what  they  read 
there,  as  Turner  read  the  sunset  and  painted 
what  he  saw.  The  simile  is  not  so  unfortunate 
as  it  may  appear,  because,  although  our  can- 
vas has  not  the  same  room  for  the  artist's 
imagination  as  Turner's  had,  it  will  probably 
be  admitted  that  the  imagination  of  the 
scientist  is  often  nearer  to  the  truth  of  things 
than  the  conventional  belief. 

THE    LIFE-STORY    OF    ALL    NATIONS 

And  the  scientist  will  come  into  our 
History  whenever  and  wherever  science  has 
any  light  to  throw  upon  its  problems. 
To  the  creators  of  this  work  the  world  is  not 
merely  an  aggregation  of  countries  under 
more  or  less  settled  governments,  nor  is 
a  country  merely  the  seat  of  a  political 
system.  They  conceive  the  earth  as  a  part 
of  the  universe,  as  one  world  among  many  ; 
and  this  is  the  story  of  a  huge  ball  flying 
in  space,  on  which  men  and  women  live  and 
move,  on  which  mighty  nations  rise  and  rule 
and  pass  away,  on  which  great  empires 
crumble  into  dust.  It  is  the  entrancing 
book  of  man  and  the  universe,  the  life- 
story  of  all  nations.  It  begins  with  the 
beginning ;  it  regards  the  universe,  as 
modern  science  has  taught  us  to  regard 
it,  as  a  vast  unit,  in  which  the  life  of  man 
is  the  ultimate  consummation. 


THE    BOOK    OF    HISTORY 


A  history  of  the  world  cannot  be  written 
in  a  day.  It  is  Uke  an  institution — it  must 
be  allowed  to  grow.  It  would  be  a  purposeless 
sacrifice  in  an  undertaking  of  such  magni- 
tude to  reject  any  work  of  building-up  that 
is  available,  and  this  History  has  a  rare 
privilege  in  being  able  to  utilise  the  result 
of  the  matchless  research,  the  tireless  indus- 
try, the  unequalled  knowledge  of  Dr.  Hans 
Helmolt  and  the  distinguished  staff  of 
scholars  and  investigators  who  have  been 
engaged  with  him  for  many  years  in  prepar- 
ing a  history  of  the  world  on  precisely  the 
lines  laid  down  in  this  work. 

THE    MATERIAL    FOR    A    WORLD    HISTORY 

It  would  be  impossible  to  exaggerate  the 
value  of  the  elaborate  research  made  for 
Dr.  Helmolt  by  such  of  his  eminent 
collaborators  as  Professor  Johannes  Ranke, 
Professor  Ratzel,  Professor  Joseph  Kohler, 
and  others  whose  names  stand  for  foremost 
authority  wherever  the  value  of  learning 
is  understood,  and  it  is  one  of  the  chief 
claims  of  this  work  to  recognition  that  it 
has  behind  it  all  the  material  collected  by 
Dr.  Helmolt's  staff,  with  all  the  judgment 
and  skill  of  Dr.  Helmolt  himself  in  co- 
ordinating the  labour  of  his  assistants. 

A  work  so  universal  in  time  and  place 
must  engage  many  minds.  Behind  it  there 
must  be  the  labour  and  thought  of  many 
lives.  The  materials  for  a  world-history 
cannot  be  amassed  by  one  man,  cannot  be 
gathered  together  in  the  time  that  it  is 
possible  for  one  man  to  devote  to  them. 
A  moment's  reflection  reveals  the  vastness 
and  complexity  of  the  arrangements  for 
such  a  work,  the  reaching-out  into  far 
corners  of  the  earth,  the  ransacking  of  his- 
torical libraries  and  official  archives  ;  the 
placing  of  the  result  of  all  this  research  into 
the  hands  of  a  hundred  trained  historians, 
the  analysing,  sifting,  and  editing  of  each 
part  as  if  it  were  in  itself  a  perfect  whole. 

A    BOOK    OF    HUMAN    EXPERIENCE 

All  this  labour  can  hardly  be  measured. 
And  if  we  add  to  our  reckoning  the  work  of 
illustrating  the  world's  history  in  pictures,  the 
task  of  finding  illustrations  where  they  are 
rare  as  precious  stones,  or  of  choosing  them 
where  their  number  is  bewildering,  the  labour 
that  a  world-history  involves  is,  indeed, 
incalculable.  It  can  only  be  accomplished 
by  the  co-operation  of  many  minds,  working 
over  a  long  period,  drawing  upon  actual 
experience  in  every  part  of  the  world. 


Especially  is  this  so  in  the  present  work. 
There  are  histories  that  can  be  made  up 
from  books,  but  this  is  not  one  of  them. 
The  Book  of  History  is  not  only  a  great 
book  of  human  experience,  as  every  history 
is  ;  it  is  the  product  of  experience.  It  could 
never  have  been  written  if  the  men  who 
write  it  had  not  helped  to  make  the  history 
that  they  write. 

THE    MAKERS    OF    THE    BOOK 

It  is  a  book  of  history  by  writers  and  makers 
of  history  ;  it  is  a  book  of  action  by  men  of 
action  ;  it  is  a  book,  that  is,  by  men  who 
know  intimately  the  real  life  of  the  world. 
When  Professor  Ratzel  writes  of  the  making 
of  nations,  he  writes  with  perhaps  an 
unequalled  knowledge  of  the  conditions  that 
have  made  for  human  progress  ;  when  Dr. 
Flinders  Petrie  writes  of  Egypt,  when  Dr. 
Sayce  writes  of  Assyria,  they  write  with  the 
same  authority  that  Sir  Harry  Johnston  has 
in  writing  of  those  parts  of  the  British 
Empire  that  he  has  helped  to  govern. 

The  real  rulers  of  the  world  are  not  the 
princes,  and  among  the  makers  of  this  book 
are  men  who,  though  the  fierce  light  that 
beats  upon  a  throne  has  not  beat  upon  them, 
have  borne  the  burden  of  empire  and  of  ruling 
men.  It  is  the  ideal  collaboration,  that  of 
the  brilliant  investigator,  the  scientific  inter- 
preter, and  the  man  of  affairs,  and  it  makes 
possible  the  achievement  of  a  History 
which  we  have  claimed  to  be  unique. 

THE  WORLD  YESTERDAY,   TO-DAY  &   TO-MORROW 

We  have  the  facts  from  the  pens  of  the 
men  who  have  dug  them  up  fresh  from  the 
earth  itself  or  who  know  them  from  experi- 
ence ;  we  have  them  treated  by  the  men 
who  can  turn  upon  them  the  full  light  of 
modern  science  ;  we  have  the  world  as  it 
moves  in  our  own  time  described  by  the  men 
who  know  it  from  the  centre,  and  know  it 
therefore  best. 

This  is  the  story  of  the  world,  then, 
yesterday  and  to-ds,y.  And,  as  history  goes 
on,  as  to-day  becomes  yesterday  and  to- 
morrow becomes  to-day,  we  shall  find  in 
this  book  a  vision  of  the  things  that  lie 
before.  Out  of  the  deeps  of  Time  came  man. 
Through  the  mists  of  Time  he  grew.  Down 
the  ages  of  Time  he  goes.  Whence  he  came 
we  guess  ;  how  he  lives  we  know  ;  where 
he  goes  the  wisdom  of  History  does  not 
tell.  But  the  historj'  of  the  world  is  young, 
and  young  men  shall  see  visions. 

The  Editors 


THE    BOOK    OF    HISTORY 

The  Life-Story  of  the  Earth  and  of  All  Nations 

TOLD    IN     SEVEN     GRAND     DIVISIONS 

This  plan  provides  a  general  scheme  for  the  Histokv,  but  is  not  intended  for 
reference.  It  does  not  follow  that  the  exact  order  of  countries  here  given  is 
maintained  throughout  the  volumes.     A  full  index  appears  at  the  end  of  the  work 


I— MAN    AND   THE    UNIVERSE 

fllE  WORM)  AND  ITS  STORY 
A  View  Across  the  Ages  :    Introduction 
Summary  of  the  History  of  the  World 
Chronology  of  10,000  Years  and  Chart  of  Nations 
MAKING  OF  THE    EARTH   AND  THE  COMING   OF   MAN 
The  Beginning  of  the  Earth 
How  Life  is  Possible  on  the  Earth 
The  Beginning  of  Life  on  the  Earth 
How  Man  Obtained  the  Mastery  of  the  Earth 

THE  RISE  OF  MAN  AND  THE  EVE  OF  HISTORY 
T^e  World  Before  History 
The  Great  Steps  In  Man's  Development 
BIRTH  OF  CIVILISATION  &  THE  GROWTH  OF  RACES 
The  Beginnings  of  Civilisation 
Hour  Civilisation  Came  to  Europe 
The  Triumph  of  Race 
An  Alphabet  of  the  World's  Races 
MAKING  OF  NATIONS  &  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  NATURE 
The  Birth  and  Growth  of  Nations 
Influence  of  Land  and   Water  on  National  History 
How   Nations  are   Affected   by  Their    Environment 
The  Size  and  Powrer  of  Nations 
The  Future  History  of  Han 

II— THE    FAR    EAST 
The  Interest  and  Importance  of  the  Far  East 
Japan.    Siberia.    China.    Korea 
Malaysia 

Philippines.  Malay  States.  Straits  Settlements.  Borneo.  Sarawak. 
Sumatra.  Java.  New  Guinea,  and  other  Islands  of  Malay  Archipelago 
Australia 

New  South  Wales.  Victoria.  Queensland.  South  Australia.  West 
Australia.     Tasmania 

NewZe.iland.  Fiji.  Pitcairn.  Hawaii.  Samoa.  Tonya  and  other  Islands 
The  Influence  of  the  Paciflc  Ocean  In  History 

III— THE    MIDDLE    EAST 

The  Importance  of  the  Middle  East 

India.     Including  Ceylon  and  the  Native  States 

Further  India 

Slam.  Aiinam.  Burma.  Tonking.  Cochin  China.  Cambodi,a.  Champa 

The  Influence  of  the  Indian  Ocean  in  History 

Central  Asia.     Afghanistan.     Baluchistan.    Turkestan.    Thibet 

IV— THE    NEAR    EAST 

The  Ancient  Empires  of  Western  Asia 

Bjljylonia.     Assyria,     hiam 

Early  Nations  of  Western  Asia 

Scythia.     Sarmatia.     Armenia.     Syria.     Phoenicia.     Israel 
IWestern  Asia  from  the  Rise  of  Persia  to  Mohammed 
Persia.  Asia  Minor.  Syria.  Pakstiiie.  Arabia.  Muditerrane.in  Islands 
Western  Asia  from  the  Time  of  Mohammed 
The  Saracen  Dominion.  The  Turkish  limpire  in  Asia.  Persia.  Arabia 

V— AFRICA 

Legacy  of   Ancient  Empires  to  the  Modern   World 
Egypt  and  the  Egyptian  Sudan 
North  Africa 

Triijoli.  Tunis.  Morocco.  Algeria  and  the  French  Territories. 
Sierra  l.eone.  Liberia.  Gold  Coast.  Nigeria.  German  West  Africa. 
Abyssinia.  Somaliland.  Erythrea.  British  East  Africa.  Zanzibar 
South  Africa 

Native  Races.  The  Portuguese  and  Dutch  in  South  Africa.  British 
South  Africa  :  Cape  Colony.  Natal.  Transvaal,  Orange  KWer  Colony, 
Rhodesia.  Congo  Free  State.  Portuguese  East  Africa.  Angola. 
German   East   Africa.     German   South-West   Africa.     Madagascar 

VI— EUROPE 

1.  EUROPE  TO  THE  FALL  OF  THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE 
Mediterranean  Influence  in  the   Malting  of  Europe 
The  Ancient  Spirit  of  Greece  and  Rome 
Early  Peoplas  of  Europe.    Ascendancy  of  the  Greeks 
The  Rise  of  Rome  and  the  World  Empire 
Social  Fabric  of  the  Ancient  World:  Slave  States 

2.  EASTERN   EUROPE  TO   FRENCH   REVOLUTION 
The  Byzantine  Empire  and  the  Turic  in  Europe 
The  Middle  Peoples 

Russia,  Poland,  and  the  Baltic  Provinces 
The    Social     Fabric    of    the    Hedisevai     World: 
The  Twilight  of  Nations 


S.  WESTERN  EUROPE  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES 
A  Survey  of  Western  Mediaeval  Europe 
The  Peoples  of  Western  Europe 
The  Importance  of  the  Baltic  Sea 

The  Emerging  of  the  Nations 

Fr.iiikish  Dominion  ami  the  Empire  of  Charlemagrne.  England. 
Spanish  Peiiinsul.i.     Italy.     The  I'apacy,     Scandinavia 

The  Development  of  the  Nations 

The  (ierman  or  Holy  Roman  Empire.     Fr.ance.    England.     Spain 

and  Portugal.     Italy.     The  Pap.icy.     Scandinavia 

The  Crusades.    Industry  and  Commerce 

4.  WESTERN  EUROPE  FROM  THE  REFORMATION 
TO  THE  REVOLUTION 
A  Survey  of  Western  Europe 
The  Reformation  and  Wars  of  Religion 

The  Age  of  Louis  XIY. 

From  the  Peace  of  Westphalia  to  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht 

The  Ending  of  the  Old  Order 

From  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht  to  the  Revolution 

The  Importance  of  the  Atlantic  to  the  DSTorld  Powers 
Religion  After  the  Reformation.  Industry  and 
Commerce 

5.  THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION 

The  Revolutionary  and  Napoleonic  Era 

The  Revolution.    The  Republic  at  War  and  the  Rise  of  Napoleon. 

Tlie  Zeiiiili  of  .N,i],oleoii  and  his  Fall 

Great  Britain  in  the  Napoleonic  Era 


6.  THE  RE-MAKING  OF  EUROPE 

Revolt  Against  Despotism 


Europe  After  Waterloo 

The  Iriuiupli  of  Despotism. 


Europe  in  Revolution 

The  Second   French   Republic  and  the  Coup  d'Etat.     The  Up- 
rising of  tne  Little  .Nations.     National  Movements  in  Gennany 
The  Consolidation  of  the  Po'wers 

Europe  and  the  Second  Empire.  1  he  Unification  of  Italy.  The 
Unification  of  Germany.     The  l*ranco-Gernian  War 

Great  Britain  to  1871.  Russia  and  Turkey  to  1871. 
Europe  since  1871 

Gre.it  Britain.  Germany.  France.  Austria-Hungary.  Spain  and 
Portugal.  Italy.  Russia.  Turkey.  Switzerland.  Greece. 
Belgium.  Holland.  Denmark.  Norway.  Sweden.  Bulgaria.  Servia. 
Rouniania.    Montenegro.     Luxemburg.     Monaco.     San  Marino 

7.  THE  EUROPEAN  POWERS  TO-DAY 
Europe  in  Our  0«rn  Time 

Great  Britain.  Germany.  Austria-Hungary.  France. 
Italy.    Russia.    Turkey.    Spain  and  Portugal 

Minor  States  of  Europe: 

Switzt-rland.  Cireece.  Belgium.  Holland.  Denmark.  Norway. 
Sweden.  Bulgaria.  Servia.  Kouinania.  Montenegro.  Luxemburg. 
Monaco.     San  Marino 

VII— AMERICA 

America  Before  Columbus 

The    Primitive    Races  of  America. 
Central  .\merica.     The  Ancient  Ci 


The  Ancient  Civilisation  of 
ilisation  of  South  America 

The  European  Colonisation 

The  Discovery.  The  Spanish  Conquest.  The  Spanish  and 
Portuguese  Flmpire  in  America.  The  Independence  of  South  and 
Centr.al  America.  The  Pilgrim  Fathers  and  the  Enghsh  Settle- 
ment.    The  Development  and  Expansion  of  the  British  Colonies 

The  American  Nation 

The  Revolt  of  the  Thirteen  Colonies.  The  Struggle  for  Indepen- 
dence and  the  War.  The  Creation  of  the  United  States.  The 
D.-vclopment  of  the  American  Nation.  The  United  States  in 
Our  Own  Time 

British  America 

Canada.  Newfoundland.  British  Westlndies.  British  Honduras. 
Bermudas. 

Central  America  In  the  10th  and  30th  Centuries 

Culii.     Haiti.     Dominica.     Porto  Rico.    Mexico.    Guatemala. 
Honduras.     San  Salvador.    Nicaragu.i.    Cost.i  Rica.    I'anama 

South  America  in  the  19th  and  20th  Centuries 

Colombia,  \eiieiuel.i.  I  rilish.  1- rem  li  .iiid  Dutch  Guiana.  Bra/il. 
Ei.li  idor.  Peru.  Chili,  liulnia.  P.ir.igii.iy.  Argentina.  Uruguay 
The  World  Around  the  Poles 
Greenland.     Iceland.     Arctic  and  Antarctic  Oceans 


X- 


^ 


THE    BOOK    OF    HISTORY 

FIRST    GRAND     DIVISION 

MAN     AND     THE     UNIVERSE 


FIRST    GRAND    DIVISION 

AAN  AND  THE   UNIVERSE 

There  can,  of  course,  be  neither  absolute  finality  nor  entire  unanimity 
in  the  subjects  of  these  chapters,  which  are  designed  to  enable  the 
reader  to  follow  the  course  of  history  with  greater  interest  and  under- 
standing than  would  be  possible  without  some  scientific  knowledge  of 
life.  They  are  presented  as  a  symposium  of  modern  thought  on  the 
problems  concerning  the  origin  and  development  of  the  earth  and  mankind 

PLAN 

THE    WORLD    AND    ITS    STORY 

A    VIEW    ACROSS    THE    AGES 

Rt.  Hon.  James  Bryce 
A    SUMMARY    OF    THE    HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 

Arthur  D.   Innes,  M.A. 

CHRONOLOGY  OF  10,000  YEARS  AND  CHART  OF  NATIONS 

MAKING  OF  THE  EARTH   &  THE  COMING  OF  MAN 

THE    BEGINNING    OF    THE    EARTH 

Dr.  Wm.  Johnson  Sollas,  F.R.S. 
HOW    LIFE    BECAME    POSSIBLE   ON    THE    EARTH 

Dr.  Alfred  Russel  Wallace,  F.R.S. 

HOW    MAN    OBTAINED    THE    MASTERY    OF    THE    EARTH 
Dr.  Archdall  Reid,  F.R.S.E. 

THE  RISE  OF  MAN   AND  THE   EVE   OF  HISTORY 

THE    WORLD    BEFORE    HISTORY 

Professor  Johannes  Ranke 
THE   GREAT   STEPS   IN    MAN'S    DEVELOPMENT 

Professor  Joseph  Kohler 

BIRTH  OF  CIVILISATION  &  THE  GROWTH  OF  RACES 

THE    BIRTH    OF    CIVILISATION 

Dr.  Flinders  Petrie,  F.R.S. 
HOW    CIVILISATION    CAME    TO    EUROPE 

David  George  Hogarth,  M.A. 
THE   TRIUMPH    OF    RACE 

Dr.  Archdall  Reid,   F.R.S.E. 
ALPHABET    OF    THE    WORLD'S    RACES 

VV.  E.  Garrett  Fisher,  Al.A. 

MAKING  OF  NATIONS  &  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  NATURE 

Professor  Friedrich   Rat/el 

THE    BIRTH    AND    GROWTH    OF    NATIONS 

INFLUENCE  OF  LAND  &  WATER  ON  NATIONAL  HISTORY 

EFFECT    OF     ENVIRONMENT    ON    NATIONS 

THE    SIZE    AND    POWER    OF    NATIONS 

THE    FUTURE    HISTORY    OF    MAN 


For  full  contents  and  page  numbers  see  Index 

Mr.  Kiplin^j's  "  Roccssioii.-il  "  is  quoted   in   a  Frontispiece  from  "  The  Five  Nations," 
by  permission  of  the  Author  and  the  Publishers.  Messrs.  Mi'thut-n 


TH 


P^/N&^m(^^^^^  G  R  ^ 


A  VIEW  ACROSS   THE  AGES 

AN    INTRODUCTION    TO    THE    BOOK    OF    HISTORY 
BY   THE    RIGHT   HON.   VISCOUNT    BRYCE 


"\Y7HEN  History,  properly  so  called,  has 
^  emerged  from  those  tales  of  the  feats 
of  kings  and  heroes  and  those  brief  entries 
in  the  roll  of  a  temple  or  a  monastery  m 
which  we  find  the  earliest  records  of  the 
past,  the  idea  of  composing  a  narrative 
which  shall  not  be  confined  to  the  for- 
tunes of  one  nation  soon  presents  itself. 

Herodotus — the  first  true  historian,  and 
a  historian  in  his  own  line  never  yet  sur- 
passed— took  for  his  subject  the  strife  be- 

tween  Greeks  and  Barbarians 
_  ^  "^  which  culminated  in  the  Great 
„.       .  Persian  War  of   B.C.   480,  and 

worked  into  his  book  all  he 
could  ascertain  regarding  most  of  the  great 
peoples  of  the  world — Babylonians  and 
Egyptians,  Persians  and  Scythians,  as  well 
as  Greeks.  Since  his  time  many  have 
essayed  to  write  a  Universal  History  ;  and 
as  knowledge  grew,  so  the  compass  of  these 
treatises  increased,  till  the  outlying  nations 
of  the  East  were  added  to  those  of  the 
Mediterranean  and  West  European  world 
which  had  formerly  filled  the  whole  canvas. 
None  of  these  books,  however,  covered 
the  field  or  presented  an  adequate  view 
of  the  annals  of  mankind  as  a  whole.  It 
was  indeed  impossible  to  do  this,  because 
the  data  were  insufficient.  Till  some  time 
way  down  in  the  nineteenth  century  that 
part  of  ancient  history  which  was  pre- 
served in  written  documents  could  be 
based  upon  the  literature  of  Israel,  ujwn 
such  notices  regarding  Egypt,  Assyria, 
Babylon,  and  Iran  as  had  been  preserved 
by  Greek  or   Roman  writers,   and   upon 


those    writers    themselves.     It    was    only 

for    some    of    the    Greek    cities,    for    the 

kingdoms  of  Alexander  and  his  successors, 

and  for  the  city  and  Emjnre   of    Rome 

that  fairly  abundant  materials  were  then 

available.     Of  the  world  outside  Europe 

and    Western    Asia,  whether    ancient  or 

modern,    scarcely    anything   was  known, 

scarcely  anything  even  of  the  earlier  annals 

of  comparatively  civilised  peoples,  such  as 

those  of  India,  China,  and  Japan,  and  still 

less    of    the    rudimentary  civilisations    of 

Mexico  and  Peru.     Nor,  indeed,  had  most 

of  the  students  who  occupied  themselves 

with  the  subject  perceived  how  important 

a  part  in  the  general  j^rogress  of  mankind 

the  more  backward  races    have    played, 

or  how  essential  to  a  true  History  of  the 

World  is  an  account  of  the  semi-civilised 

and  even  of  the  barbarous  peoples.    Thus  it 

was  not  possible,  until  quite  recent  times, 

that  the  great  enterprise  of  preparing  such 

c  .    ^.,.          a  history  should  be  attempted 
Scientific  •{  • .,  .   * .    , 

„.  on  a    plan  or  with  materials 

IS  oryon  y    ^^jjj^^|-,jg  ^^  j^^  magnitude. 
now  Possible        i-i       1      ,  r  1  ■ 

1  he  last  seventy  or  eighty 

years  have  seen  a  vast  increase  in    our 

materials,  with  a  corresponding  widening 

of  the  conception  of  what  a  History  of  the 

World  should  be.     Accordingly,  the  time 

for  trying  to  produce  one  upon  a  new  plan 

and  enlarged  scale  seems  to  have  arrived  ; 

not,  indeed,  that  the  years  to  come  will 

not   continue    to   add   to   the   historian's 

resources,   but   that   those  resources  have 

recently   become   so    much   amj:)ler    than 

they    have    ever    been    before    that    the 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


New  Material 

and 

New  Methods 


moment  may  be  deemed  auspicious  for 
a  new  departure. 

The  nineteenth  century  was  marked  by 
three  changes  of  the  utmost  consequence 
for  the  writing  of  history. 

That  century,  in  the  first  place,  has 
enormously  widened  our  knowledge  of 
the  times  hitherto  called  prehistoric. 
The  discovery  of  methods  for  deciphering 
the  inscriptions  found  in  Egypt  and 
Western  Asia,  the  excavations  m  Assyria 
and  Egypt,  in  Continental 
Greece  and  in  Crete,  and 
to  a  lesser  extent  in  North 
Africa  also,  in  the  course 
of  which  many  inscriptions  have  been 
collected  and  fragments  of  ancient  art 
examined,  have  given  us  a  mass  of 
knowledge  regarding  the  nations  who 
dwelt  in  these  countries  larger  and 
more  exact  than  was  possessed  by  the 
writers  of  classical  antiquity  who  lived 
comparatively  near  to  those  remote  times. 
We  possess  materials  for  the  study  not 
only  of  the  political  history  but  of  the 
ethnology,  the  languages,  and  the  culture 
of  the  nations  which  were  first  civilised 
incomparably  better  than  were  those  at 
the  disposal  of  the  contemporaries  of  Vico 
or  Gibbon  or  Herder.  Similar  results 
have  followed  as  regards  the  Far  East, 
from  the  opening  up  of  Sanskrit  literature 
and  of  the  records  of  China  and  Japan.  To 
a  lesser  degree, 
the    same    thing 


another.  As  history  proper  has  been 
carried  back  many  centuries  beyond  its 
former  limit,  so  has  our  knowledge  of 
prehistoric  times  been  extended  centuries 
above  the  furthest  point  to  which  history 
can  now  reach  back.  And  this  applies 
not  only  to  the  countries  previously 
little  explored,  but  to  such  well-known 
districts  as  Western  Europe  and  the 
Atlantic  coast  of  America. 

Secondly,  there  has  been  during  the 
nineteenth  century  a  notable  improvement 
in  the  critical  method  of  handling  historical 
materials.  Much  more  pains  have  been 
taken  to  examine  all  available  documents 
and  records,  to  obtain  a  perfect  text  of 
each  by  a  comparison  of  manuscripts  or 
of  early  printed  copies,  and  to  study  each 
by  the  aid  of  other  contemporary  matter. 
It  is  true  that,  with  the  exception  of 
Egyptian  papyri  and  some  manuscripts 
unearthed  in  Oriental  monasteries  (besides 
those  Indian,  Chinese,  and  other 
early  Eastern  sacred  books  to  which 
I  have  already  referred),  not  very  much 
that  is  absolutely  new  has  been  brought  to 
light.  It  is  also  true  that  a  few  of  the 
most  capable  students  in  earlier  days,  in 
the  ancient  world  as  well  as  since  the 
Renaissance,  have  fully  seen  the  value  of 
original  authorities  and  have  applied  to 
them  thoroughly  critical  methods.  This 
is  not  a  discovery  of  our  own  times.  .  Still, 
it  may  be 
claimed  that 
there  was  never 
before  so  great  a 
zeal  for  collecting 
and  investigating 
all  possible  kinds 
of  original  texts, 
nor  so  widely 
diffused  a  know- 
ledge of  the 
methods  to  be 
applied    in    turn- 


has  happened  as 
regards  the  semi- 
civilised  peoples 
of  tropical 
America  both 
north  and  south 
of  the  Isthmus 
of  Panama.  And 
while  long  periods 
of      time      have 

thus  been  brought 

within  the  range    the  world  as  known  to  its  first  historian   ing  them  to    ac 

r\(        Viicf/->rir        \trn      The  world  as  known  to  Herodotus  is  shown  by  the  white  part  of  this    rniint         for        +Vif» 
Ol        History,       WL      map.  indicating  the  limited  range  of  ancient  geographical  knowledge.     '-^""'-         i'-'i  ^     ^"-UC 

have  also  learnt 

much  more  about  the  times  that 
may  still  be  called  prehistoric.  The 
investigations  carried  on  in  mounds  and 
caves  and  tombs  and  lake-dwellings, 
the  collection  of  early  stone  and  bronze 
implements,  and  of  human  skulls  and 
bones  found  along  with  those  of  other 
animals,  have  thrown  a  great  deal  of  new 
light  upon  primitive  man,  his  way  of 
hfe,  and  his  migrations  from  one  region  to 

8 


purposes  of  his- 
tory. Both  in  Europe  and  in  America 
an  unprecedentedly  large  number  of 
competent  men  have  been  employed 
upon  researches  of  this  kind,  and  the 
result  of  their  labours  on  special  topics 
has  been  to  provide  the  writer  who  seeks 
to  present  a  general  view  of  history  with 
materials  not  only  larger  but  far  fitter 
for  his  use  than  his  predecessors  ever 
enjoyed.     Then    with    the    improvement 


INTRODUCTION    BY    RT.    HON.    VISCOUNT    BRYCE 


in  critical  apparatus,  there  has  come  a 
more  cautious  and  exact  habit  of  mind 
m  the   interpretation  of  facts. 

Thirdly,  the  progress  of  the  sciences 
of  Nature  has  powerfully  influenced  his- 
tory, both  by  providing  new  da<a  and 
by  affecting  the  mental  attitude  of  all 
reflective  men.  This  has  happened  in 
several  ways.  Geographical  exploration 
has  made  known 
nearly  every  part 
of  the  surface 
of  the  habitable 
globe.  The  great 
natural  features  of 
every  country,  its 
mountain  ranges  and 
rivers,  its  forest  or 
deserts,  have  been 
ascertained.  Its 
flora  and  fauna  have 
been  described,  and 
thereby  its  capacity 
lor  supporting 
human  life  approxi- 
mately calculated. 
The  other  physical 
conditions  which 
govern  the  develop- 
ment of  man,  such 
as  temperature,  rain- 
fall, and  the  direc- 
tion of  prevalent 
winds  have  been 
examined.  Thus  we 
have  acquired  a 
treasury  of  facts  re- 


'THE    FATHER    OF    HISTORY' 


latins   to    the    causes      Herodotus,   the  first   historian,  was   born   between   B. 
,   ^  1  •  ,  •  470-480  at   Halicarnassus,  a  Greek  colony  in  Asia  Min 

«,nd     conditions 

■  which  help  the  growth  of  civilisation  and 
mould  it  into  diverse  forms,  conditions 
whose  importance  I  shall  presently  discuss 
in  considering  the  relation  of  man  to  his 
natural  environment.  Although  a  few 
penetrating  minds  had  long  ago  seen  how 
much  the  career  of  each  nation  must 
have  been  affected  by  physical  pheno- 
mena, it  is  only  in  the  last  two  genera- 
tions that  men  have  begun  to  study  these 
phenomena  in  their  relation  to  history, 
and  to  appreciate  their  influence  in  the 
formation  of  national  types  and  in  deter- 
mining the  movement  of  races  over  the 
earth's  surface. 

Not  less  remarkable  has  been  the  in- 
crease in  our  knowledge  of  the  more 
remote  and  backward  peoples.  Nearly 
every  one  of  these  has  now  been  visited 
by  scientific  travellers  or  missionaries,  its 


language  written  down,  its  customs  and 
religious  rites,  sometimes  its  folk  lore  also, 
recorded.  Thus  materials  of  the  highest 
value  have  been  secured,  not  only  for 
completing  our  knowledge  of  mankind  as 
a  whole,  but  for  comprehending  in  the 
early  history  of  the  now  highly  civilised 
peoples  various  facts  which  had  previously 
remained  obscure,  but  which  became 
intelligible  when 
compared  with  simi- 
lar facts  that  can 
be  studied  in  their 
actuality  among 
tribes  whom  we  find 
in  the  same  stage 
to-day  as  were  the 
ancestors  of  the 
civilised  nations 
many  centuries  ago. 
The  progress  thus 
achieved  in  the 
science  of  man  re- 
garded as  a  part  of 
Nature  has  power- 
fully contributed  to 
influence  the  study 
of  human  com- 
munities as  they 
appear  in  history. 
The  comparative 
method  has  become 
the  basis  for  a  truly 
scientific  inquiry 
into  the  develop- 
ment of  institutions, 
and  the  connection 
of  religious  beliefs 
and  ceremonies  with 
the  first  beginnings  of  institutions  both 
social  and  political  has  been  made  clear 
by  an  accumulation  of  instances.  Whether 
or  no  there  be  such  a  thing  as  a  Science 
of  History — a  question  which,  since  it  is 
mainly  verbal,  one  need  not  stop  to  discuss 
— there  is  such  a  thing  as  a  scientific 
method  applied  to  history ;  and  the  more 
familiar  men  have  become 
with  the  methods  of  inquiry 
and  canons  of  evidence  used 
in  physical  investigations, 
so  much  the  more  have  they  tended  to 
become  exact  and  critical  in  historical 
investigations,  and  to  examine  the  causes 
and  the  stages  by  and  through  which 
historical  development  is  effected. 

In  noting  this  I  do  not  suggest  that 
what  is  popularly  called  the  "  Doctrine 
of  Evolution  "  should  be  deemed  a  thing 


c. 

inor 


Progress 
of  the 
Sciences 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


borrowed  by  history  from  the  sciences  of 
nature.  Most  of  what  is  true  or  helpful 
in  that  doctrine  was  known  long  ago,  and 
applied  long  ago  by  historical  and  political 
.  thinkers.     You  can  find    it  in 

Historical     ^ristotle,  perhaps  before  Aris- 
Knowledge    ^^^^^     Even  as  regards  the  bio- 

in Uur  lime   ,       •      »         ■  ,i  i-  x 

logical  sciences,  the  notion  oi 
what  we  call  evolution  is  ancient ;  and  the 
merit  of  Darwin  and  other  great  modern 
naturalists  has  lain,  not  in  enouncing 
the  idea  as  a  general  theory,  but  in 
elucidating,  illustrating,  and  demonstrat- 
ing the  processes  by  which  evolution  takes 
place.  The  influence  of  the  natural  sciences 
on  history  is  rather  to  be  traced  in  the 
efforts  we  now  see  to  accumulate  a  vast 
mass  of  facts  relating  to  the  social,  eco- 
nomic, and  pohtical  hfe  of  man,  for  the 
sake  of  discovering  general  laws  run- 
ning through  them,  and  imparting  to  them 
order  and  unity. 

Although  the  most  philosophic  and 
diligent  historians  have  always  aimed 
at  and  striven  for  this,  still  the  general 
diffusion  of  the  method  in  our  own 
time,  and  the  greatly  increased  scale 
on  which  it  is  applied,  together  with  the 
higher  standard  of  accuracy  which  is 
exacted  by  the  opinion  of  competent 
judges,  may  be,  in  some  measure, 
ascribed  to  the  examples  which  those 
who  work  in  the  spheres  of  physics  and 
biology  and  natural  history  have  so 
effectively  set. 

Finally,  the  progress  of  natural  science 
has  in  our  time,  by  stimulating  the 
production  and  exchange  of  commodities, 
drawn  the  different  parts  of  the  earth 
much  nearer  to  one  another,  and 
thus  brought  nearly  all  its  tribes  and 
nations  into  relations  with  one  another 
far  closer  and  far  more  frequent  than 
existed  before. 

This  has  been  done  by  the  inventions 
that  have  given  us  steam  and  electricity 
as  motive  forces,  making  transport  quicker 
and  cheaper,  and  by  the  ajiplication  of  elec- 
tricity to  the  transmission  of  words.  No 
changes  that  have  occurred  in  the  past 
(except  perhaps  changes  in  the  s])here  of 
religion)     are    comjiarable    in 

"*"*'*'  their  importance  as  factors  in 

?.     ^    „         history    to   those  which  have 

Human  Race       1^1,1  / 

shortened  the  voyage  from 
Western  ICurope  to  America  to  five  and  a 
half  days,  and  made  communication  with 
Australia  instantaneous.  For  the  first 
time  the    human  race,  always  essentially 

10 


one,  has  begun  to  feel  itself  one,  and 
civilised  man  has  in  every  part  of  it 
become  a  contemporaneous  observer  of 
what  passes  in  every  other  part. 

The  general  result  of  these  various 
changes  has  been  that  while  the  materials 
for  writing  a  history  of  the  world  have 
been  increased,  the  conception  of  what  such 
a  history  should  be  has  been  at  the  same 
time  both  enlarged  and  defined.  Its 
scope  is  wider  ;  its  lines  are  more  clearly 
drawn.  But  what  do  we  mean  by  a 
Universal  History  ?  Briefly,  a  History 
which  shall,  first,  include  all  the  races 
and  tribes  of  man  within  its  scope  ;  and, 
secondly,  shall  bring  all  these  races  and 
tribes  into  a  connection  with  one  another 
such  as  to  display  their  annals  as  an 
organic  whole. 

Universal  history  has  to  deal  not  only 
with  the  great  nations,  but  also  with  the 
small  nations  ;  not  only  with  the  civilised, 
but  also  with  the  barbarous  or  savage 
peoples  ;  not  only  with  the  times  of  move- 
ment and  progress,  but  also  with  the  times 
of  silence  and  apparent  stagnation. 
Every  fraction  of  humanity  has  contributed 

something     to     the     common 
Importance    ^^^^j^^       ^^^     ^^^       y^^,^^      ^^^ 

°  *  ^.  _  laboured  not  for  itself  only, 
ma  aces  ^^^  ^^^  others  also,  through  the 
influence  which  it  has  perforce  exercised 
on  its  neighbours.  The  only  exceptions 
we  can  imagine  are  the  inhabitants  of  some 
remote  isle,  "  far  placed  amid  the  melan- 
choly main."  Yet  they,  too,  must  hav^e 
once  formed  part  of  a  race  dwelling  in  the 
region  whence  they  came,  even  if  that  race 
had  died  out  in  its  old  home  before 
civilised  man  set  foot  on  such  an  oceanic 
isle  in  a  later  age.  The  world  would  have 
been  different,  in  however  small  a  measure, 
had  they  never  existed.  As  in  the  realm 
of  physical  science,  so  in  that  of  history 
no  fact  is  devoid  of  significance,  though 
the  true  significance  may  remain  long 
unnoticed.  The  history  of  the  backward 
races  presents  exceptional  difficulties, 
because  they  have  no  written  records,  and 
often  scarcely  any  oral  traditions.  Some- 
times it  reduces  itself  to  a  description  of 
their  usages  and  state  of  life,  their  arts  and 
their  superstitions,  at  the  time  when  civil- 
ised observers  first  visited  them.  Yet  that 
history  is  instructive,  not  only  because 
the  phenomena  observable  among  such 
races  enlarge  our  knowledge,  but  also 
because  through  the  study  of  those  which 
survive  we  are  able  to  interpret  the  scanty 


T  "r:yi:o  l-^W 


^te^ 


ANCIENT  EGYPT'S  STRANGE  BOOKS  AND  PICTORIAL  RECORDS,  MADE  OF  PAPYRUS 
Papyrus,  a  tall,  graceful,  sedgy  plant,  supplied  the  favourite  writing  material  of  the  ancient  world,  and  many  price- 
less records  of  antiquity  are  preserved  to  us  in  papyri.  The  pith  of  the  plant  was  pressed  flat  and  thin  and  joined 
with  others  to  form  strips,  on  which  records  were  written  or  painted  The  above  is  a  photograph  of  a  piece  of  Egyptian 
papyrus,  showing  both  hieroglyphics  and  picture-writing.      Th,-  oldest   piece   of  papyrus  dates  back  to  B.C.  3500. 


records  we  possess  of  the  early  condition 
of  peoples  now  civilised,  and  to  go  some 
way  towards  writing  the  history  of 
what  we  have  hitherto  called  pre- 
historic man. 

Thus  such  tribes  as  the  aborigines  of 
Australia,  the  Fuegians  of  jVIagellan's 
Straits,  the  Bushmen  of  South  Africa,  the 
Sakalavas  of  Madagascar,  the  Lapps  of 
Northern  Europe,  the  Ainos  of  Japan,  the 
numerous  "  hill-tribes  "  of  India,  will  all 
come  within  the  historian's  ken.  From 
each  of  them  something  may  be  learnt  ; 
and  each  of  them  has  through  contact 
with  its  more  advanced  neighbours  affected 
those  neighbours  themselves,  sometimes 
in  blood,  sometimes  through  superstitious 
beliefs  or  rites,  frequently  borrowed  by  the 
higher  races  from  the  lower  (as  the 
Norsemen  learnt  magic  from  the  Lapps, 
and  the  Semites  of  Assyria  from  the 
Accadians),  sometimes  through  the  strife 
which  has  arisen  between  the  savage 
and  the  more  civilised  man,  whereby 
the  institutions  of  the  latter  have  been 
modified. 


Obviously  the  historian  cannot  record 
everything.  These  lower  races  are  com- 
paratively unimportant.  Their  contribu- 
tions to  progress,  their  effect  on  the 
general  march  of  events,  have  been  but 
small.  But  they  must  not  be  wholly 
omitted  from  the  picture,  for  without  them 
it  would  have  been  different.  One  must 
never  forget,  in  following  the  history  of 
the  great  nations  of  antiquity,  that  they 
fought  and  thought  and  built  up  the  fabric 
of  their  industry  and  art  in  the  midst 
of  a  barbarous  or  savage  population 
surrounding  them  on  all  sides,  whence 
they  drew  the  bulk  of  their  slaves 
and  some  of  their  mercenary  soldiers, 
and  which  .sometimes  avenged  itself  by 
sudden  inroads,  the  fear  of  which  kept 
the  Greek  cities,  and  at  certain  epochs 
even  the  power  of  Rome,  watchful 
and  anxious.  So  in  modern  times 
the  savages  among  whom  European 
colonies  have  been  planted,  or  who 
have  been  transported  as  slaves  to  other 
colonies — sometimes,  as  in  the  case  of 
Portugal    in    the    fifteenth    century,     to 

II 


HISTORY    OF    THE     WORLD 


Europe  itself — or  those  with  whom  Euro- 
peans have  carried  on  trade,  must  not  be 
omitted  from  a  view  of  the  causes  which 
have  determined  the  course  of  events  in 
the  civihsed  peoples. 

To  dwell  on  the  part  played  by  the  small 

nations  is  less  necessary  here,  for  even  a 

superficial    student    must    be 

p      !    *         of  them  have  counted  for  more 
eop  es  \^\^^ii    the    larger    nations    to 

whose  annals  a  larger  space  is  commonly 
allotted.  The  instance  of  Israel  is  enough, 
so  far  as  the  ancient  world  is  concerned, 
to  show  how  little  the  numbers  of  a  people 
have  to  do  with  the  influence  it  may 
exert.  For  the  modern  world,  I  will  take 
the  case  of  Iceland. 

The  Icelanders  are  a  people  much  smaller 
than  even  was  Israel.  They  have  never 
numbered  more  than  about  sev^enty 
thousand.  They  live  in  an  isle  so  far  remote, 
and  so  sundered  from  the  rest  of  the  world 
by  an  inhospitable  ocean,  that  their  re- 
lations both  with  Europe,  to  which  ethnolo- 
gically  they  belong,  and  with  America,  to 
which  geographically  they  belong,  have 
been  comparatively  scanty.  But  their  his- 
tory, from  the  first  settlement  of  the  island 
by  Norwegian  exiles  in  a.d.  874  to  the 
extinction  of  the  National  Republic  in 
A.D.  1264,  is  full  of  interest  and  instruc- 
tion, in  some  respects  a  perfectly  unique 
history.  And  the  literature  which  this 
Iiandful  of  people  produced  is  certainly 
the  most  striking  primitive  literature 
which  any  modern  people  has  produced, 
superior  in  literary  quality  to  that  of  the 
Continental  Teutons,  or  to  that  of  the 
Romance  nations,  or  to  that  of  the  Finns 
or  Slavs,  or  even  to  that  of  the  Celts.  Yet 
most  histories  of  Europe  pass  by  Iceland 
altogether,  and  few  persons  in  Continental 
Europe  (outside  Scandinavia)  know  any- 
thing about  the  inhabitants  of  this  isle, 
who,  amid  glaciers  and  volcanoes,  have 
maintained  themselves  at  a 
high  level  of  intelligence  and 
culture  for  more  than  a 
tliousand  years. 
The  small  peoples  have  no  doubt  been 
more  potent  in  the  spheres  of  intellect 
and  emotion  than  in  those  of  war,  politics, 
or  commerce.  But  the  influences  which 
belong  to  the  sphere  of  creative  in- 
telligence— that  is  to  say,  of  literature, 
philosophy,  religion  and  art — are  just  those 
which  it  is  peculiarly  the  function  of  a 
History  of   the  World   to  disengage  and 

12 


The  Culture 
of  the 
Icelanders 


follow  out  in  their  far-reaching  con- 
sequence. They  pass  beyond  the  limits  of 
the  country  where  they  arose.  They  sur- 
vive, it  may  be,  the  race  that  gave  birth 
to  them.  They  pass  into  new  forms,  and 
through  these  they  work  in  new  ways 
upon  subsequent  ages. 

It  is  also  the  task  of  universal  history 
so  to  trace  the  march  of  humanity  as 
to  display  the  relation  which  each  part 
of  it  bears  to  the  others ;  to  fit  each 
race  and  tribe  and  nation  into  the  main 
narrative.  To  do  this,  three  things  are 
needed — a  comprehensive  knowledge,  a 
power  of  selecting  the  salient  and  signifi- 
cant points,  and  a  talent  for  arrangement. 
Of  these  three  qualifications,  the  first  is 
the  least  rare.  Ours  is  an  age  of 
specialists  ;  but  the  more  a  man  buries 
himself  in  special  studies,  the  more  risk 
does  he  incur  of  losing  his  sense  of  the 
place  which  the  object  of  his  own  study 
fills  in  the  general  scheme  of  things. 
The  highly  trained  historian  is  generally 
able    to    draw    from     those    who     have 

worked   in   particular    depart- 

_  ^      *  ^    ments     the     data    he    needs ; 

cope  o       ^]-,iig  the  master  of  one  single 

department  may  be  unable  to 
carry  his  vision  over  the  whole  horizon, 
and  see  each  part  of  the  landscape  in  its 
relations  to  the  rest. 

In  other  words,  a  History  of  the  World 
ought  to  be  an  account  of  the  human 
family  as  an  organic  whole,  showing  how 
each  race  and  state  has  affected  other 
races  or  states,  what  each  has  brought 
into  the  common  stock,  and  how  the 
interaction  among  them  has  stimulated 
some,  depressed  or  extinguished  others, 
turned  the  main  current  this  way  or  that. 
Even  when  the  annals  of  one  particular 
country  are  concerned,  it  needs  no  small 
measure  of  skill  in  expression  as  well  as 
of  constructive  art  to  trace  their  connec- 
tion with  those  of  other  countries.  To 
take  a  familiar  example,  he  who  writes 
the  history  of  England  must  have  his 
eye  always  alive  to  what  is  passing  in 
France  on  one  side,  and  in  Scotland  on 
the  other,  not  to  speak  of  countries  less 
closely  connected  with  England,  such  as 
Germany  and  Spain.  He  must  let  the 
reader  feel  in  what  way  the  events  that 
were  happening  in  France  and  Scotland 
affected  men's  minds,  and  through  men's 
minds  affected  the  progress  of  events  in 
England.  Yet  he  cannot  allow  himself 
constantly  to  interrupt  his  Enghsh  narra- 


VIVID    SCENiI.      Jl      ANCIENT    LIFE    DEPICTED    BY    CONTEMPORARY    ARTISTS 
The  walls  of  the  tombs  in  Egypt  form  a  great  picture  gallery  of  the  vanished  life  of  that  country  and  are  invaluable 
to  the  historian.      This  fragment  from  the  British  Museum  shows  how  vividly  the   domestic   figures  were  realised. 


tive  in  order  to  tell  what  was  passing 
beyond  the  Channel  or  across  the  Tweed. 
Obviously,  this  difficulty  is  much  in- 
creased when  the  canvas  is  widened  to 
include  all  Europe,  and  when  the  aim 
is  to  give  the  reader  a  just  impression  of 
the  general  tendencies  of  a  whole  age, 
such  an  age  as,  for  instance,  the  six- 
teenth century,  over  that  vast  area.  If 
for  a  History  of  the  World  the  old  plan 
be  adopted — that  of  telhng  the  story  of 
each  nation  separately,  yet  on  lines 
generally  similar,  cross  references  and  a 
copious  use  of  chronological  tables  be- 
come helpful,  for  they  enable  the 
contemporaneity  of  events  to  be  seen 
at  a  glance,  and  as  the  history  of 
each  nation  is  being  written  with  a 
view  to  that  of  other  nations,  the 
tendencies  at  work  in  each  can  be  ex- 
plained and  illustrated  in  a  way  which 
shows  their  parallelism,  and  gives 
to  the  whole  that  unity  of  meaning 
and  tendency  which  a  universal  history 
must  constantly  endeavour  to  display. 
The  connection  between  the  progress  or 
.  .  decline  of  different  peoj^les  is 

,.'*!  ^  °   ,      best    understood     by    setting 
„.  forth  the  various  forms  which 

'^^  similar  tendencies  take  in  each. 
To  do  this  is  a  hard  task  when  the  his- 
torian is  dealing  with  the  ancient  world, 
or  with  the  world  outside  Europe  even  in 
mediaeval  and  post-mediaeval  times.  For 
the  modern  European  nations  it  is  easier, 
because,  ever  since  the  spread  of  Christi- 


anity made  these  nations  parts  of  one  great 

ecclesiastical    community,    similar    forces 

have  been  at  work  upon  each  of  them, 

and   every   intellectual   movement   which 

has  told  upon  one  has  more  or  less  told 

upon  the  others  also. 

Such  a  History  of  the  World  may  be 

written  on  more  than  one  plan,  and  in  the 

light  of  more  than  one  general  theory  of 

human  progress.     It  might  find  the  central 

line  of  human  development  in  the  increase 

of   man's  knowledge,  and  in  particular  of 

his  knowledge  of  Nature  and  his  power 

of  dealing  with  her.     Or  that  which  we 

call  culture,  the  comprehensive  unfolding 

and  polishing  of  human  faculty  and  of  the 

power  of  intellectual  creation  and  appreci- 

_  ,  ,  , .  ation,  might  be  taken  as  mark- 
Central  Line  -  ^-u  J.  1  J  ij 
,  „  mg  the  most  real  and  solid 
of  Human  i  •  j  j  ^i,  j.  m 
_  ,  .  kind  of  progress,  so  that  its 
Development             xl             i  j   i_  \l 

growth  would  best  represent 

the  advance  of  man  from  a  savage  to  a 

highly  civilised  condition.     Or  if  the  moral 

and  political  sphere  were  selected  as  that  in 

which  the  onward  march  of  man  as  a  social 

being,    made    to    live    in    a    community, 

could  best  be  studied,  the  idea  of  liberty 

might  be  made  a  pivot  of  the  scheme  ; 

for  in  showing  how  the  individual  emerges 

from  the  family  or  the  tribe,   how  first 

domestic   and   then   also   praedial  slavery 

slowly    disappears,    how    institutions    are 

framed  under  which  the  will  of  one  ruler 

or  of  a  small  group  begins  to  be  controlled, 

or  replaced  as  a  governing  force,  by  the 

collective    will    of    the   members    of    the 

13 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


of  Human 
Society 


community,  how  the  primordial  rights  of 
each  human  creature  win  their  way  to 
recognition — in  tracing  out  all  these  things 
the  history  of  human  society 
If  H.  i.7  is  practically  written,  and  the 
significance  of  all  political 
changes  is  made  clear.  Another 
way,  again,  would  be  to  take  some 
concrete  department  of  human  activity, 
follow  it  down  from  its  earliest  to  its 
latest  stages,  and  group  other  depart- 
ments round  it.  Thus  one  author  might 
take  religion,  and  in  making  the  his- 
tory of  religion  the  main  thread  of  his 
narrative  might  deal  incidentally  with 
the  other  phenomena  which  have  in- 
fluenced it  or  which  it  has  influenced. 
Or,  similarly,  another  author  might  take 
political  institutions,  or  perhaps  economic 
conditions — i.e.,  wealth,    labour,    capital, 


Each  Race 
a  Distinct 
Entity 


THE    MASTER-KEY   TO    THE    HIEROGLYPHICS 


The  i.iscribed  stone  found  at  Rosetta,  in  the  Nile  delta,  in  1799,  now  preserved 
in  the  British  Museum.  It  gave  the  key  to  the  hieroglyphic  writings  of  Egypt. 
It  is  a  decree  of  Ptolemy  Epiphanes,  promulgated  at  Memphis  in  B.C.  196,  and 
as  it  is  inscribed  in  hieroglyphic  ancf  in  the  script  of  the  country  as  well  as 
in  Greek,  it  thus  solved  the  long  standing  mystery  of  the  hieroglyphics 
of  the  monuments,   which   before    its    discovery   had  been   quite  unintelligible. 

14 


commerce,  or,  again,  the  fundamental 
social  institutions,  such  as  the  family, 
and  the  relations  of  the  ranks  and  classes 
in  a  community,  and  build  up  round  one 
or  other  of  these  manifestations  and 
embodiments  of  the  creative  energy  of 
mankind  the  general  story  of  man's  move- 
ment from  barbarism  to  civilisation.  Even 
art,  even  mechanical  inventions,  might  be 
similarly  handled,  for  both  of  these  stand 
in  a  significant  relation  to  all  the  rest  of  the 
life  of  each  nation  and  of  the  world  at  large. 
Nevertheless,  no  one  of  these 
suggested  lines  on  which  a 
universal  history  might  be  con- 
structed would  quite  meet  the 
expectations  which  the  name  Universal 
History  raises,  because  we  have  become 
accustomed  to  think  of  history  as  being 
primarily  and  pre-eminently  a  narrative  of 
the  growth  and  develop- 
ment of  communities, 
nations,  and  states  as  or- 
ganised political  bodies, 
seeing  that  it  is  in  their 
character  as  bodies  so 
organised  that  they  come 
into  relation  with  other 
nations  and  states.  It  is 
therefore  better  to  follow 
tlie  familiar  plan  of  deal- 
ing with  the  annals  of 
each  race  and  nation  as 
a  distinct  entity,  while 
endeavouring  to  show 
throughout  the  whole 
narrative  the  part  which 
each  fills  in  the  general 
drama  of  human  effort, 
conflict,  and  progress. 

A  universal  history 
may,  however,  while 
conforming  to  this  estab- 
lished method,  follow  it 
out  along  a  special  line, 
which  shall  give  promi- 
nence to  some  one  lead- 
ing idea  or  principle. 
Such  a  line  or  point  of 
view  has  been  found 
for  the  present  work 
in  the  relation  of  man 
to  his  physical  environ- 
ment— that  is  to  say, 
to  the  geographical  con- 
ditions which  have 
always  surrounded  him, 
and  always  must  sur- 
round    him,    conditions 


UNEARTHING    THE    RUINS    OF    ANCIENT    BABYLON     IN    THE    TWENTIETH    CENTURY 
This  photograph  illustrates  how  present-day  exploration  brings  the  remains  of  the  ancient  wonder  cities  of  Babylonia 
to  light  after  the  sleep  of  ages.     Much  valuable  knowledge  of  Babylon  has  been  acquired  quite  recently  as  a  result 
of  excavations  now  being  carried  on  under  the  supervision  of  English,  American,  French,  and  German  explorers. 


whose  power  and  influence  he  has  felt 
ever  since  he  appeared  upon  the  globe. 
This  point  of  view  is  more  comprehen- 
sive than  any  one  of  those  above  enu- 
merated. Physical  environment  has  told 
upon  each  and  every  one  of  the  lines 
of  human  activity  already  enumerated 
that  could  be  taken  to  form  a  central 
line  for  the  writing  of  a  history  of  man- 
kind. It  has  influenced  not  only  political 
institutions  and  economic  phenomena,  but 
also  religion,  and  social  institutions,  and 
art,  and  inventions.  No  department  of 
man's  life  has  been  independent  of  it,  for 


it  works  upon  man  not  only  materially 
but  also  intellectually  and  morally. 

As  this  is  the  idea  which  has  governed 
the  preparation  of  the  present  book,  as  it 
is  constructed  upon  a  geographical  rather 
than  a  purely  chronological  plan  (though, 
of  course,  each  particular  country  and 
nation  needs  to  be  treated  chronologi- 
cally), some  few  pages  may  properly 
be  devoted  here  to  a  consideration  of  the 
way  in  which  geography  determines 
history,  or,  in  other  words,  to  an 
examination  of  the  relations  of  Nature, 
inorganic  and  organic,  to  the  life  of  man. 


MAN'S    PLACE     IN     NATURE'S    KINGDOM 


TTHOUGH  we  are  accustomed  to  contrast 
^  man  with  Nature,  and  to  look  upon  the 
world  outside  ourselves  as  an  object  to 
be  studied  by  man,  the  conscious  and 
intelligent  subject,  it  is  evident,  and  has 
been  always  recognised  even  by  those 
thinkers  who  have  most  exalted  the  place 
man  holds  in  the  Cosmos,  that  man  is  also 
to  be  studied  as  a  part  of  the  physical  uni- 
verse. He  belongs  to  the  realm  of  Nature 
in  respect  of  his  bodily  constitution,  which 
links  him  with  other  animals,  and  in  certain 


respects  with  all  the   phenomena  that  lie 
within  the  sphere  of  biology. 

All  creatures  on  our  earth,  since  they 
have  bodies  formed  from  material  con- 
stituents, are  subject  to  the  physical  laws 
which  govern  matter  ;  and  the  life  of  all 
is  determined,  so  far  as  their  bodies  are 
concerned,  by  the  physical  conditions 
which  foster,  or  depress,  or  destroy  life. 
Plants  need  soil,  moisture,  sunshine,  and 
certain  constituents  of  the  atmosphere. 
Their  distribution  over  the  earth's  surface 

15 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


depends  not  only  upon  the  greater  or  less 
extent  to  which  these  things,  essential  to 
their  existence,  are  present,  but  also  upon 
the  configuration  of  the  earth's  surface 
(continents  and  oceans),  upon  the  greater 
or  less  elevation  above  sea  level  of  parts  of 
it,  upon  such  forces  as  winds  and  ocean 
currents  (occasionally  also  upon  volcanoes), 
upon  the  interposition  of  arid  deserts  be- 
tween moister  regions,  or  upon  the  flow  of 
great  rivers.  The  flora  of  each  country 
is  the  resultant  (until  man  appears  upon 
the  scene)  of  these  na-tural  conditions. 

We  know  that  some  plants  are 
also  affected  by  the  presence  of  certain 
animals,  particularly  insects  and  birds. 
Similarly,  animals  depend  upon  these 
same  conditions  which  regulate  their 
distribution,  partly  directly,  partly  in- 
directly, or  mediately  through  the  depend- 
ence of  the  animal  for  food  upon  the 
plants  whose  presence  or  absence  these 
conditions  have  determined.  It  would 
seem  that  animals,  being  capable  of 
moving  from  place  to  place,  and  thus  of 
finding  conditions  suitable  for  their  life, 
and  to  some  extent  of  modifying  their  life 
to  suit  the  nature  around  them,  are  some- 
what more  independent  than  plants  are, 
though  plants,  too,  possess  powers  of  adapt- 
-,  ,      .        ing  themselves  to  climatic  sur- 

„  ....  roundmgs  ;  and  there  are  some 
Conditions  i     ?      ■ 

,  w .,  — such,  lor  mstance,  as  our  com- 

mon brake-fern  and  the  grass  of 
Parnassus — which  seem  able  to  thrive  un- 
modified in  very  different  parts  of  the  globe. 
The  primary  needs  of  man  which  he 
shares  with  the  other  animals  are  an 
atmosphere  which  he  can  breathe,  a  tem- 
perature which  he  can  support,  water 
which  he  can  drink,  and  food.  In  respect 
of  these  he  is  as  much  the  product  of  geo- 
graphical conditions  as  are  the  other 
living  creatures.  Presently  he  superadds 
another  need,  that  of  clothing.  It  is  a 
sign  that  he  is  becoming  less  dependent 
on  external  conditions,  for  by  means  of 
clothing  he  can  make  his  own  temperature 
and  suocccd  in  enduring  a  degree  of  cold, 
or  changes  from  heat  to  cold,  which  might 
otherwise  shorten  his  life.  The  discovery 
of  fire  carries  him  a  long  step  further,  for 
it  not  only  puts  him  less  at  the  mercy  of 
low  temperatures,  but  extends  the  range 
of  his  food  supplies,  and  enables  him,  by 
procuring  better  tools  and  weapons,  to 
obtain  his  food  more  easily.  We  need  not 
pursue  his  upward  course,  at  every  stage 
of  which  he  finds  himself  better  and  still 

i6 


better  able  to  escape  from  the  thraldom 
of  Nature,  and  to  turn  to  account  the 
forces  which  she  puts  at  his  disposal.  But 
although  he  becomes  more  and  more  inde- 
pendent, more  and  more  master  not  only 
of  himself,  but  of  her,  he  is  none  the  less 
always  for  many  purposes  the  creature  of 
the  conditions  with  which  she  surrounds 
him.  He  always  needs  what  she  gives  him. 
He  must  always  have  regard  to  the  laws 
which  he  finds  operating  through  her 
realm.  He  always  finds  it 
_  *"  ^  the  easiest  course  to  obey,  and 
of  Natur  ^°  ^^^  rather  than  to  attempt 
to  resist  her. 
Here  let  me  pause  to  notice  a  remark- 
able contrast  between  the  earlier  and  the 
later  stages  of  man's  relations  to  Nature. 
In  the  earlier  stages  he  lies  helpless  before 
her,  and  must  take  what  she  chooses 
to  bestow — food,  shelter,  materials  for 
clothing,  means  of  defence  against  the 
wild  beasts,  who  are  in  streng'th  far  more 
than  a  match  for  him.  He  depends  upon 
her  from  necessity,  and  is  better  or 
worse  off  according  as  she  is  more  or  less 
generous. 

But  in  the  later  stages  of  his  progress 
he  has,  by  accumulating  a  store  of  know- 
ledge, and  by  the  development  of  his  intel- 
ligence, energy,  and  self-confidence,  raised 
himself  out  of  his  old  difficulties.  He 
no  longer  dreads  the  wild  beasts.  They, 
or  such  of  them  as  remain,  begin  to 
dread  him,  for  he  is  crafty,  and  can  kill 
them  at  a  distance.  He  erects  dwellings 
which  can  withstand  rain  and  tempest. 
He  irrigates  hitherto  barren  lands  and 
raises  abundant  crops  from  them.  When 
he  has  invented  machinery,  he  produces 
in  an  hour  clothing  better  than  his  hands 
could  formerly  have  produced  in  a  week. 
If  at  any  given  time  he  has  not  plenty 
of  food,  this  happens  only  because  he  has 
allowed  his  sf)ecies  to  multiply  too  fast. 
He  is  able  to  cross  the  sea  against 
adverse  winds  and  place  himself  in  a  more 
fertile  soil  or  under  more  genial 
skies  than  those  of  his  former 
home.  As  respects  all  the 
primary  needs  of  his  life,  he 
has  so  subjected  Nature  to  himself,  that 
he  can  make  his  life  what  he  will. 

All  this  renders  him  independent.  But 
he  now  also  finds  himself  drawn  into  a  new 
kind  of  dependence,  for  he  has  now 
come  to  take  a  new  view  of  Nature.  He 
perceives  in  her  an  enormous  storehouse 
of  wealth,  by  using  which  he  can  multiply 


Man's 
Advance  in 
Knowledge 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Man  the 
Master 
of  Nature 


his  resources  and  gratify  his  always 
increasing  desires  to  an  extent  practically 
unlimited.  She  provides  forces,  such  as 
steam  and  electricity,  which  his  knowledge 
enables  him  to  employ  for  production  and 
transj:)ort,  so  as  to  spare  his  own  physical 
strength,  needed  now  not  so  much  for 
effort  as  for  the  direction  of  the  efforts  of 
Nature.  She  has  in  the  forest, 
and  still  more  beneath  her  own 
surface  in  the  form  of  minerals, 
the  materials  by  which  these 
forces  can  be  set  in  motion  ;  and  by  using 
these  forces  man  can,  with  comparatively 
little  trouble,  procure  abundance  of  those 
materials. 

Thus  his  relation  to  Nature  is  changed. 
It  was  that  of  a  servant,  or,  indeed,  rather 
of  a  beggar,  needing  the  bounty  of  a 
sovereign.  It  is  now  that  of  a  master 
needing  the  labour  of  a  servant,  a  servant 
infinitely  stronger  than  the  master,  but 
absolutely  obedient  to  the  master  so  long 
as  the  master  uses  the  proper  spell.  Thus 
the  connection  of  man  with  Nature, 
changed  though  his  attitude  be,  is  really 
as  close  as  ever,  and  far  more  complex. 
If  his  needs  had  remained  what  they  were 
in  his  primitive  days — let  us  say,  in  those 
palc'eolithic  days  which  we  can  faintly 
adumbrate  to  ourselves  by  an  observation 
of  the  Australian  or  Fuegian  aborigines 
now — he  would  have  sat  comparatively 
lightly  to  Nature,  getting  easily  what  he 
wanted,  and  not  caring  to  trouble  her  for 
n;ore.  But  his  needs — that  is  to  say,  his 
desires,  both  his  physical  appetites  and 
his  intellectual  tastes,  his  ambitions  and 
his  fondness  for  comfort,  things  that  were 
once  luxuries  having  become  necessaries — 
have  so  immeasurably  expanded  that,  since 
he  asks  much  more  from  Nature,  he  is 
obliged  to  study  her  more  closely  than  ever. 
Thus  he  enters  into  a  new  sort  of 
dependence  upon  her,  because  it  is  only 
by  understanding  her  capacities  and 
llic  nuans  of  using  them  that  he  can  get 
^M     .    ..,       from     her     what     he    wants. 

Man  s  New    rt   ■      •^-  j.-   n    j 

„  ,  ,.  Frunitive     man    was    satisfied 

j^  it    he    could   nnd   spots  where 

the    trees    gave    edible    fruit, 

where   the    sun    was    not    too    hot,    nor 

the  winds  too  cold,  where  the  beasts  easy 

of  capture  were  abundant,  and  no  tigers 

or    pythons    made    the    forest    terrible. 

Civilised  man  has  more  complex  problems 

to  deal  with,  and  wider  fields  to  search. 

The   study   of    Nature   is    not    only   still 

essential  to  him,  but  really  more  essential 

i8 


than  ever.  His  hfe  and  action  are  con- 
ditioned by  her.  His  industry  and  his 
commerce  are  directed  by  her  to  certain 
spots.  That  which  she  has  to  give  is 
still,  directly  or  indirectly,  the  source  of 
strife,  and  a  frequent  cause  of  war.  As 
men  fought  long  ago  with  flint-headed 
arrows  for  a  spring  of  water  or  a  coconut 
grove,  so  they  fight  to-day  for  mineral 
treasures  imbedded  in  the  soil.  It  is 
mainly  by  Nature  that  the  movements  of 
emigration  and  the  rise  of  populous  centres 
of  industry  are  determined. 

Though  Nature  still  rules  for  many 
purposes  and  in  many  ways  the  course 
of  human  affairs,  the  respective  value  of 
her  various  gifts  changes  from  age  to  age, 
as  man's  knowledge  and  power  of  turning 
them  to  account  have  changed.  The 
things  most  prized  by  primitive  man  are' 
not  those  which  semi-civilised  man  chiefly 
prized,  still  less  are  they  those  most  sought 
for  now. 

In  primitive  times  the  spots  most 
attractive,  because  most  favourable  to 
human  life,  were  those  in  which  food 
could  be  most  easily  and  safely  obtained 
from  fruit-bearing  trees  or  by  the  chase, 
and  where  the  climate  was 
N^T^  genial  enough  to  make  clothing 

yr    ...  and  shelter  needless,  at   least 

during  the  greater  part  of  the 
year.  Later,  when  the  keeping  of  cattle 
and  tillage  had  come  into  use,  good  pastures 
and  a  fertile  soil  in  the  valley  of  a  river 
were  the  chief  sources  of  material  well- 
being.  Wild  beasts  were  less  terrible, 
because  man  was  better  armed  ;  but  as 
human  enemies  were  formidable,  regions 
where  hills  and  rocks  facilitated  defence  by 
furnishing  natural  strongholds  had  their 
advantages. 

Still  later,  forests  came  to  be  recognised 
as  useful  for  fuel,  and  for  carpentry  and 
shipbuilding.  Mineral  deposits,  usually 
found  in  hilly  or  mountainous  districts, 
became  pre-eminently  important  sources 
of  wealth ;  and  rivers  were  valued  as 
highways  of  commerce  and  as  sources  of 
motive  power  by  the  force  of  their  currents. 
To  the  Red  Indians  of  the  Ohio  valley 
the  places  which  were  the  most  attractive 
camping-grounds  were  those  whither  the 
buffaloes  came  in  vast  herds  to  lick  the 
rock  salt  exposed  in  the  sides  of  the  hills. 
It  is  now  not  the  salt-licks,  but  the  existence 
of  immense  deposits  of  coal  and  iron,  that 
have  determined  the  growth  of  huge  com- 
munities in  those  regions  whence  the  red 


INTRODUCTION    BY   RT.    HON.    VISCOUNT    BRYCE 


man  and  the  buffalo  have  both  vanished. 
England  was  once,  as  New  Zealand  is  now, 
a  great  wool-growing  and  wool-exporting 
country,  whereas  she  is  to-day  a  country 
which  spins  and  weaves  far  more  wool 
than  she  produces. 

So,  too,  the  influence  of  the  sea  on  man 
has  changed.  There  was  a  time  when 
towns  were  built  upon  heights  some  way 
off  from  the  coast,  because  the  sea  was 
the  broad  high  road  of  pirates  who  swooped 
down  upon  and  pillaged  the  dwellings  of 
those  who  lived  near  it.  Now  that  the 
sea  is  safe,  trading  cities  spring  up  upon 
its  margin,  and  sandy  tracts  worthless  for 
agriculture  have  gained  an  unexpected 
value  as  health  resorts,  or  as  places  for 
playing  games,  places  to  which  the  in- 
habitants of  inland  districts  flock  in 
summer,  as  they  do  in  England  and 
Germany,  or  in  winter,  as  they  do  on  the 
Mediterranean  coasts  of  France.  The 
Greeks,  when  they  began  to  compete  with 
the  Phoenicians  in  maritime  commerce, 
sought  for  small  and  sheltered  inlets  in 
which  their  tiny  vessels  could  lie  safely — 
such  inlets  as  Homer  describes  in  the 
Odyssey,  or  as  the  Old  Port  of  Marseilles, 
.  a  city  originally  a  colony  from 

Harbours      *^^  Ionian  Phocaea.   Nowadays 
Y»#"j^      these    pretty    little    rock    har- 
and  Modern  ,  ^         -^   ,         r       ji       i 

bours  are  useless  tor  the  large 

ships  which  carry  our  trade.  The  Old 
Port  of  Marseilles  is  abandoned  to  small 
coasters  and  fishing-boats,  and  the  ocean 
steamers  lie  in  a  new  harbour  which  is 
protected,  partly  by  outlying  islands, 
partly  by  artificial  works. 

So,  too,  river  valleys,  though  still 
important  as  highways  of  traffic,  are 
important  not  so  much  in  respect  of  water 
carriage  as  because  they  furnish  the 
easiest  hues  along  which  railways  can  be 
constructed.  The  two  banks  of  the  Rhine, 
each  traversed  by  a  railroad,  carry  far 
more  traffic  than  the  great  stream  itself 
carried  a  century  ago ;  and  the  same 
remark  applies  to  the  Hudson.  All  these 
changes  are  due  to  the  progress  of  inven- 
tion, which  may  give  us  fresh  changes  in 
the  future  not  less  far-reaching  than 
those  the  past  has  seen.  Mountainous 
regions  with  a  heavy  rainfall,  such  as 
Western  Norway  or  the  coast  of  the 
Pacific  in  Washington  and  British  Colum- 
bia, may,  by  the  abundance  of  water 
power  which  they  supply,  which  can 
be  transmuted  into  electrical  energy, 
become   sources   of  previously   unlooked- 


for  wealth,  especially  if  some  cheap  means 
can  be  devised  of  conveying  electricity 
with  less  wastage  in  transmission  than  is 
at  present  incurred.  Within  the  last  few 
years  considerable  progress  in  this  direc- 
tion has  been  made.  Should  effective 
and  easily  applicable  preventives  against 
malarial  fever  be  discovered,  many  dis- 
TK    w    \A    *^^^^s    "ow    shunned,    because 

-        ^   ^    '  dangerous  to  the  life  of  white 

Importance  °  ,  ,\.     ■>  i 

txM  i-  •      men,  mav  become  the  homes  of 

of  Medicine    „        ■  ^  ■'  -i-  t-l 

fiounshmg  communities.     Ihe 

discovery  of  cinchona  bark  in  the  seven- 
teenth century  affected  the  course  of 
events,  because  it  provided  a  remedy 
against  a  disease  that  had  previously 
baffled  medical  skill.  If  quinine  had  been 
at  the  disposal  of  the  men  of  the  Middle 
Ages,  not  only  might  the  lives  of  many 
great  men,  as  for  instance  of  Dante,  have 
been  prolonged,  but  the  Teutonic  emperors 
would  have  been  partially  relieved  of  one 
of  the  chief  obstacles  which  prevented 
them  from  establishing  permanent  control 
over  their  Italian  dominions.  Rome  and 
the  Papal  power  defended  themselves 
against  the  hosts  of  the  Franconian  and 
Hohenstaufen  sovereigns  by  the  fevers  of 
the  Campagna  more  effectively  than  did 
the  Roman  people  by  their  arms,  and 
almost  as  effectively  as  did  the  Popes  by 
their  spiritual  thunders. 

Bearing  in  mind  this  principle,  that  the 
gifts  of  Nature  to  man  not  only  increase, 
but  also  vary  in  their  form,  in  proportion 
and  correspondence  to  man's  caj^acity  to 
use  them,  and  remembering  also  that  man- 
is  almost  as  much  influenced  by  Nature 
when  he  has  become  her  adroit  master 
as  when  she  was  his  stern  mistress,  we 
may  now  go  on  to  examine  more  in  detail 
the  modes  in  which  her  influence  has  told 
and  still  tells  upon  him. 

It  has  long  been  recognised  that  Nature 
must  have  been  the  principal  factor  in 
producing,  that  is  to  say,  in  differentiating, 
the  various  races  of  mankind  as  we  find 
them  differentiated  when  our 
records  begin.  How  this  hap- 
pened is  one  of  the  darkest 
problems  that  history  presents. 
By  what  steps  and  through  what  causes 
did  the  races  of  man  acquire  these 
diversities  of  physical  and  intellectual 
character  which  are  now  so  marked 
and  seem  so  persistent  ?  It  has  been 
suggested  that  some  of  these  diversities 
may  date  back  to  a  time  when  man,  as 
what    is    called    a    distinct   species,    had 


The  Problem 
of  Racial 
Distinctions 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


scarcely  begun  to  exist.  Assuming  the 
Darwinian  hypothesis  of  the  development 
of  man  out  of  some  pithecoid  form  to  be 
correct — and  those  who  are  not  them- 
selves scientific  naturalists  can  of  course 
do  no  more  than  provisionally  accept  the 
conclusions  at  which  the  vast  majority  of 
scientific  naturalists  have  arrived — it  is 
conceivable  that 
there  may  have 
been  unconnected 
developments  of 
creatures  from 
i  n  t  ermediate 
forms  into  de- 
finitely human 
forms  in  differ- 
ent regions,  and 
that  some  of 
the  most  marked 
types  of  humanity 
may  therefore 
have  had  their 
first  rudimentary 
and  germinal  be- 
ginning before 
any  specifically 
human  type  had 
made  its  appear- 
a  n  c  e .  This, 
however,  is  not 
the  view  of  the 
great  majority  of 
naturalists.  They 
appear  to  hold 
that  the  j^assage 
either  from  some 
anthropoid  apes, 
or  from  some 
long  since  extinct 
common  ancestor 
of  man  and  the 
existing  anthro- 
poid apes  —  this 
latter  alternative 
representing  whai 
IS  now  the  domi- 
nant view  —  did 
not  take  j)lace 
through  several 
channels  (so  to 
speak),  but 
through  one  only,  and  that  there  was 
a  single  specifically  human  type  which 
subsequently  diverged  into  the  varieties 
we  now  see. 

If  this  be  so,  it  is  plain  that  climate,  and 
the  conditions  of  life  which  depend  upon 
climate,  soil,  and  the  presence  of  vegetables 

20 


TREE    DWELLERS 

We  must  remember  that  such  terms  as  "The  Stone  Age,"  "The 
Bronze  Age,"  and  so  forth,  are  only  loosely  applied.  The  ages  so 
called  did  not  close  at  certain  periods.  There  are  races  now 
living  in  all  the  conditions  of  these  past  ages.  This  photograph, 
for  example,  shows  the  actual  tree  dwellings  of  the  Papuans  in  New 
Guinea  to-day    -one  of  the  most  primitive  forms  of  human  habitation. 


and  of  other  animals  besides  man,  must 
have  been  the  forces  which  moulded  and 
developed  those  varieties.  From  a  remote 
antiquity,  everybody  has  connected  the 
dark  colour  of  all,  or  nearly  all,  the  races 
inhabiting  the  torrid  zone  with  the  power 
of  the  sun  ;  and  the  fairer  skin  of  the 
races  of  the  temperate  and  arctic  zones 

with  the  com- 
parative feeble- 
ness of  his  rays 
in  tho.se  regions. 
This  may  be  ex- 
j)lained  on  Dar- 
winian principles 
by  supposing 
that  the  darker 
varieties  were 
found  more 
capable  of  sup- 
porting the  fierce 
heat  of  the 
tropics.  What 
explanation  is  to 
be  given  of  the 
other  character- 
istics of  the  negro 
and  negroid 
races,  of  the 
usually  frizzled 
hair,  of  the  pecu- 
liar nose  and  jaw, 
and  so  forth,  is 
a  question  foi 
the  naturalist 
rather  than  for 
the  historian.  Al- 
though climate 
and  food  may  be 
the  chief  factors 
in  differentiation, 
the  nature  of  the 
process  is,  as  in- 
deed is  the  case 
with  the  species 
of  animals  gene- 
rally, sometimes 
very  obscure. 
Take  an  in- 
stance from  three 
African  races 
which,  so  far  as 
we  can  tell,  were  formed  under  similar 
climatic  conditions — the  Bushmen,  the 
Hottentots,  and  the  Bantu,  the  race 
including  those  whom  we  call  Kafhrs. 
Their  physical  aspect  and  colour  are 
different.  Their  size  and  the  structure 
of  their  bodies  are  different.  Their  mental 


THE  HABITATIONS  OF  MAN  IN  ALL  AGES  OF  THE  WORLD'S  HISTORY 
At  first  man  built  twig  huts  in  trees,  but  becoming  better  matched  with  his  animal  foes  he  took  to  caves  and  under- 
ground habitations.  Our  illustration  of  the  latter  shows  a  section  through  the  soil.  Lake  dwellings  marked  a 
distinct  advance.  Other  varieties  of  primitive  habitations  are  the  leaf  hut,  the  tents  of  skin,  the  mud  hut,  and  the 
beehive  hut  of  stone.  Roman  villas  are  still  models  of  beauty.  American  "  skyscrapers  "  are  pecuUar  to  our  time  ; 
but  all  early  forms  of  dwellings,  while  marking  progress,  have  existed  contemporaneously  throughout  history. 

21 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


aptitudes  are  different  ;  and  one  of  the 
oddest  points  of  difference  is  this,  that 
whereas  the  Bushmen  are  the  least 
advanced,  intellectually,  morally,  and 
politically,  of  the  three  races,  as  well 
as  the  physically  weakest,  they  show 
a  talent  for  drawing  which  is  not 
possessed   by   the  other  two. 

In  this  case  there  is,  of 
Is  the  Race  ^Q^j-gg^  ^  vast  unknown  fore- 
.  ^^\^V,  o      time   during  which   we   may 

Insoluble?  ■         .1       T,       ^ 

nnagme  the  Bantu  race,  pro- 
bably originally  formed  in  a  region 
other  than  that  which  it  now  occupies 
(and  under  more  favourable  conditions 
for  progress),  to  have  become  widely 
differentiated  from  those  which  are 
now  the  lower  African  races.  We  still 
know  comparatively  little  about  African 
ethnography.  Let  us,  therefore,  take 
another  instance  in  which  affinities  of 
language  give  ground  for  believing 
that  three  races,  whose  differences 
are  now  marked,  haVe  diverged  from  a 
common  stock.  So  far  as  language  goes, 
the  Celts,  the  Teutons,  and  the  Slavs, 
all  speaking  Indo-European  tongues,  may 
be  deemed  to  be  all  nearly  connected  in 
origin.  They  are  marked  by  certain 
slight  physical  dissimilarities,  and  by  per- 
haps rather  more  palpable  dissimilarities  in 
their  respective  intellectual  and  emotional 
characters.  But  so  far  as  our  knowledge 
goes,  all  three  have  lived  for  an  immensely 
long  period  in  the  colder  parts  of  the 
temperate  zone,  under  similar  external 
conditions,  and  following  very  much  the 
same  kind  of  pastoral  and  agricultural  hfe. 
There  is  nothing  in  their  environment 
which  explains  the  divergences  we  perceive; 
so  the  origin  of  these  divergences  must 
aj^parently  be  sought  either  in  admixture 
with  other  races  or  in  some  other  historical 
causes  which  are,  and  will  for  ever  re- 
main, in  the  darkness  of  a  recordless  past. 

How   race  admixture  works,   and  how 

it   forms  a  new  definite  character  out  of 

.  diverse  elements,  is  a  subject 

ixing  o        which  anyone  may  find  abund- 

the  World  s  ,  i.      ■    y     (  .     ^    ■ 

ant  materials  for  studymg   m 
eop  es  ^j^^  history  of  the  last  two  thou- 

sand years.  Nearly  every  modern  Eurojwan 
people  has  been  .so  formed.  The  French, 
the  Spaniards,  and  the  English  are  all  the 
products  of  a  mixture,  in  different  pro- 
portions, of  at  least  three  elements — 
Iberian  (to  use  a  current  name),  Celts, 
and  Teutons,  though  the  Celtic  element 
is  probably  comparatively  small  in  Spain, 

22 


and  the  Teutonic  comparatively  small 
both  in  Spain  and  in  Central  and  Southern 
France.  No  small  part  of  those  who  to- 
day speak  German  and  deem  themselves 
Germans  must  be  of  Slavonic  stock.  Those 
who  to-day  speak  Russian  are  very  largely 
of  Finnish,  to  some  small  extent  of  Tartar, 
blood.  The  Itahans  probably  spring  from 
an  even  larger  number  of  race-sources, 
without  mentioning  the  vast  number  of 
slaves  brought  from  the  East  and  the  North 
into  Italy  between  B.C.  loo  and  a.d.  300. 
In  the  cases  of  Switzerland  and  Scotland 
the  process  of  fusion  is  not  yet  complete. 
The  Celto-Burgundian  Swiss  of  Neuchatel 
is  still  different  from  the  Allemanian 
Swiss  of  Appenzcll  ;  as  the  Anglo-Celt 
of  Fife  is  different  from  the  Ibero-Celt  of 
the  Outer  Hebrides.  But  in  both  these 
cases  there  is  already  a  strong  sense  of 
national  unity,  and  in  another  three 
hundred  years  there  may  have  arisen  a 
single  type  of  character. 

An  interesting  and  almost  unique  case 
is  furnished  by  Iceland,  where  isolation 
under  peculiar  conditions  of  climate,  food, 
and  social  life  has  created  a  somewhat 
different  type  both  of  body  and  of  mental 
.  character  from  that  of  the 
The  Unique  J^;oI.wegians,  although  so  far  as 
f*i^  .  blood  goes  the  two  peoples  are 
identical,  Iceland  having  been 
colonised  from  Western  Norway  a  thousand 
years  ago,  and  both  Icelanders  and  Nor- 
wegians having  remained  practically  un- 
mixed with  any  other  race — save  that  some 
slight  Celtic  infusion  came  to  Iceland 
with  those  who  migrated  thither  from  the 
Norse  settlements  in  Ireland,  Northern 
Scotland,  and  the  Hebrides — since  the 
separation  took  place.  But  by  far  the 
most  remarkable  instance  of  race  admixture 
is  that  furnished  in  our  own  time  by  the 
United  States  of  North  America,  where 
a  people  of  predominantly  English  stock 
(although  there  were  in  the  end  of  the 
eighteenth  century  a  few  descendants  of 
Dutchmen,  with  Germans,  Swedes,  and 
Ulster  Irishmen,  in  the  country)  has 
within  the  last  sixty  years  received 
additions  of  many  millions  of  Celts,  of 
Germans  and  Scandinavians,  and  of 
various  Slavonic  races.  At  least  a 
century  must  elapse  before  it  can  be 
seen  how  far  this  infusion  of  new  blood 
will  change  the  type  of  American 
character  as  it  stood  in  1840. 

There    are,    however,    two    noteworthy 
differences  between  modern  race  fusions 


INTRODUCTION    BY   RT.    HON.    VISCOUNT    BRYCE 


and  those  which  belong  to  primitive  times. 
One  is  that  under  modern  conditions 
the  influence  of  what  may  be  called  the 
social  and  political  environment  is  probably 
very  much  greater  than  it  was  in  early 
times.  The  American-born  son  of  Irish 
parents  is  at  forty  years  of  age  a  very 
different  creature  from  his  cousin  on  the 
coast  of  Mayo.  The  other  is  that  in  modern 
times  differences  of  colour  retard  or  forbid 
the  fusion  of  two  races.  So  far  as  the  Teu- 
tonic peoples  are  concerned,  no  one  will 
intermarry  with  a 
negro ;  a  very  few 
with  a  Hindu,  a 
Chinese,  or  a  Malay. 
In  the  ancient  world 
there  was  but  little 
contact  between  white 
men  and  black  or 
yellow  ones,  but  the 
feeling  of  race  aver- 
sion was  ap- 
parently less 
strong    than    it 


of  their  movements  from  one  part  of  the 
earth  to  another,  these  movements  having 
been  in  their  turn  a  potent  influence  in 
the  admixture  of  the  races.  Some  geo- 
graphers have  alleged  climate — that  is  to 
say,  the  desire  of  those  who  inhabit  an 
inclement  region  to  enjoy  a  softer  and 
warmer  air — as  a  principal  motive  which 
has  induced  tribes  of  nations  to  transfer 
themselves  from  one  region  to  another. 

It  is  no  doubt  true  that  the  direction  of 
migrations  has  almost  always  been  either 
from  the  north  towards 
the  south,  or  else  along 
parallels     of     latitude, 
men  rarely  seeking  for 
themselves     conditions 
more  severe  than  those 
under  which  they  were 
born.    But  it  is  usually 
not  so  much    the  wish 
to  escape  cold  that  has 
been  an  effective 
motive     as    the 
wish      to      find 


THE    REMARKABLE    INFLUENCE    OF    ENVIRONMENT    ON    PHYSICAL    APPEARANCE 
Mr.  Bryce  points  out  that  the  physical   features  of  a   people   are   determined   chiefly  by  their  environment.      These 
illustrations  show  (at  top)  a  typical  English  settler  in  the  old  Colonial  days  of  America,  a  native  Red  Indian  (left)  and  a 
typical  American  of  to-day  (right).     Without  any  intermingling  of  red  men  and  white,  the  modern  American,  thanks  to 
climatic  conditions,  resembles  the  Red  Indian  far  more  closely  than  he  does  his  own  ancestors  of  the  Colonial  days. 


is  now,  just  as  it  was  much  less  strong 
among  the  Spaniards  and  Portuguese 
in  the  sixteenth  and  .seventeenth  centuries 
than  it  is  among  Americans  or  English- 
men to-day.  It  is  less  strong  even  now 
among  the  so-called  "  Latin  races  ;  "  and 
as  regards  the  Anglo-Americans,  it  is 
much  less  strong  towards  the  Red  Indians 
than  towards  negroes. 

As  Nature  must  have  been  the  main 
agent  in  the  formation  of  the  various 
races  of  mankind  from  a  common  stock, 
so  also  Nature  has  been  the  chief  cause 


more  and  better  food,  since  this  means  an 
altogether  easier  life.  Scarcity  of  the  means 
of  subsistence,  which  is,  of  course,  most 
felt  when  population  is  increasing,  has 
operated  more  frequently  and  ]')owerfully 
than  any  other  cause  in  bringing  on  dis- 
placements of  the  races  of  man  over  the 
globe.  The  movement  of  the  primitive 
Aryans  into  India  from  the  plateaux  of 
West  Central  Asia,  probably  also  the 
movement  of  the  races  which  speak 
Dravidian  languages  from  South  Central 
Asia  into  Southern  India,  and  probably 

23 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


also  the  mighty  descent,  in  the  tourth  and 
fifth  centuries  A.D.,  of  the  Teutonic  races 
from  the  lands  between  the  Baltic  and 
the  Alps  into  the  Roman  Empire,  had 
this  origin. 

In  more  advanced  states  of  society  a 
like  cause  leads  the  surplus  population  of 
a  civilised  state  to  overflow  into  new 
lands,  where  there  is  more 
_  ^  .  .  space,  or  the  soil  is  more  fertile. 
o  onising  -pj^yg  ^YiQ  inhabitants  of  South- 
western Scotland,  partly,  no 
doubt,  at  the  suggestion  of  their  rulers, 
crossed  over  into  Ulster,  where  they  occu- 
pied the  best  lands,  driving  the  aboriginal 
Celts  into  the  rougher  and  higher  districts, 
where  their  descendants  remain  in  the 
glens  of  Antrim,  and  in  the  hilly  parts  of 
Down,  Derry,  and  Tyrone.  Thus  the  men 
of  New  England  moved  out  to  the  West 
and  settled  in  the  Mississippi  Valley,  while 
the  men  of  Virginia  crossed  the  AUeghanies 
into  Kentucky.  Thus  the  English  have 
colonised  Canada  and  Australia  and  New 
Zealand  and  Natal.  Thus  the  Russians 
have  spread  out  from  their  ancient  homes 
on  the  upper  courses  of  the  Dnieper  and 
the  Volga  all  over  the  vast  steppes  that 
stretch  to  the  Black  Sea  and  the  Caucasus, 
as  well  as  into  the  rich  lands  of  South- 
western Siberia.  Thus  the  surplus  peasantry 
of  Germany  has  gone  not  only  to  North 
America,  but  also  to  Southern  Brazil  and 
the  shores  of  the  Rio  de  la  Plata. 

In  another  form  it  is  the  excess  of  popu- 
lation over  means  of  subsistence  at  home 
that  has  produced  the  remarkable  outflow 
of  the  Chinese  through  the  Eastern 
Archipelago  and  across  the  Pacific  into 
North  America,  and  that  has  carried  the 
Ja{)ancse  to  the  Hawaiian  Islands.  And 
here  we  touch  another  cause  of  migration 
which  is  indirectly  traceable  to  Nature — 
namely,  the  demand  in  some  countries 
for  more  labour  or  cheaper  labour  than  the 
inhabitants  of  the  country  -are  able  or 
willing  to  supply.   Sometimes  this  demand 

^,     -,     ,      is     attributable     to      climatic 

I  he  Need  tu       o  ■      j  j 

j^    .  causes.       I  he    Spaniards    and 

,    .  Portuguese  and  English  in  the 

New  World   were   unfitted   by 

their  physical  constitutions  for  out-of-door 

labour  under  a  tropical  sun.     Hence  they 

im]>ortcd  negroes  during  the  sixteenth  and 

two  following  centuries  in  such  numbers 

that   there  are  now  about  eight  millions 

of  coloured  people  in   the  United  States 

alone,  and  possibly  (though  no  accurate 

figures  exist)  as  many  more  in  the  West 

24 


Indies  and  South  America.  To  a  much 
smaUer  extent  the  same  need  for  foreign 
labour  has  recently  brought  Indian  coolies 
to  the  shores  of  the  Caribbean  Sea,  and  to 
the  hottest  parts  of  Natal,  as  it  brings 
Polynesians  to  the  sugar  plantations 
of  Northern  Queensland. 

Two  other  causes  which  have  been 
potent  in  bringing  about  displacements 
and  mixtures  of  population  are  the  desire 
for  conquest  and  plunder  and  the  senti- 
ment of  religion.  But  these  belong  less 
to  the  sphere  of  Nature  than  to  that  of 
human  passion  and  emotion,  so  that  they 
'  scarcely  fall  within  this  part  of  our 
inquiry,  the  aim  of  which  has  been  to 
show  how  Nature  has  determined  history 
by  inducing  a  shifting  of  races  from 
place  to  place.  From  this  shifting  there 
has  come  the  contact  of  diverse  elements, 
with  changes  in  each  race  due  to  the 
influence  of  the  other,  or  perhaps  the  ab- 
sorption of  one  in  the  other,  or  the  develop- 
ment of  something  new  out  of  both.  In 
considering  these  race  movements  we 
have  been  led  from  the  remote  periods  in 
which  they  began,  and  of  which  we  know 
scarcely  anything  except  from  archaeologi- 
cal    and    linguistic    data,     to 

•  *   T^  ^^  periods    within   the    range    of 
mines  Race  ,i        .■         1  •    .  o 

„  ^     authentic     history.       So     we 

Movements  ,  ■',  xt    ^ 

may  go  on  to  see  how  Nature 

has  determined  the  spots  in  which  the 
industry  of  the  more  advanced  races 
should  build  up  the  earliest  civilisations, 
and  the  lines  along  which  commerce,  a 
principal  agent  in  the  extension  of 
civilisation,  should  proceed  to  link  one 
race  with  another. 

It  was  long  since  observed  that  the 
first  homes  of  a  dense  population  and  a 
highly  developed  civilisation  lay  in  fertile 
river  valleys,  such  as  those  of  the  Lower 
Nile,  the  Euphrates,  the  Tigris,  the 
Ganges,  the  Yang-tse-kiang.  All  these 
are  situate  in  the  hotter  parts  of  the 
temperate  zone  ;  all  are  regions  of  ex- 
ceptional fertility.  The  soil,  especially 
when  tillage  has  become  general,  is  the 
first  source  of  wealth  ;  and  it  is  in  the 
midst  of  a  prosperous  agricultural  jwpula- 
tion  that  cities  spring  up  where  handi- 
crafts and  the  arts  arise  and  flourish. 
The  basins  of  the  Lower  Nile  and  of  the 
Lower  luii:)hrates  and  Tigris  are  (as 
respects  the  West  Asiatic  and  Mediter- 
ranean world)  the  fountain-heads  of 
material,  military,  and  artistic  civihsa- 
tion.     From    them    it    spreads    over    the 


The  earliest  agents  in  the  diffusion  of  trades  and  the  arts  were  the  Phoenicians,  who  from  their  great  cities/ 

Sidon,  and   Carthage  conducted   a   sea-borne  traffic    with   lands   as   remote   as  England,  and  whose  ad^ 

sailors,  despite  the  smallness  of  their  vessels,  are  believed  even  to  have  succeeded  in  rounding  the  Cape  of  y 


^1 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


adjacent  countries  and  along  the  coasts 
of  Europe  and  Africa.  On  the  east, 
Egypt  and  Mesopotamia  are  cut  off  by 
the  deserts  of  Arabia  and  Eastern  Persia 
from  the  perhaps  equally  ancient  civilisa- 
tion of  India,  which  again  is  cut  off  by 
lofty  and  savage  mountains  from  the  very 
ancient  civilisation  of  China.  Nature 
forbade  intercourse  between  these  far 
eastern  regions  and  the  West  Asian 
peoples,  while  on  the  other  hand  Nature 
permitted  Egypt,  Phoenicia,  and  Babylon 
to  influence  and  become  teachers  of  the 
peoples  of  Asia  Minor  and  of  the  Greeks 
on  both  sides  of  the  i^gean  Sea.  The 
isolation  and  consequent  independent 
development  of  India  and  of  China  is  one 
of  the  most  salient  and  significant  facts 
of  history.  It  was  not  till  the  end  of  the 
fifteenth  century,  when  the  Portuguese 
reached  the  Malabar  coast,  that  the 
Indian  peoples  began  to  come  into  the 
general  movement  of  the  world  ;  for  the 
expedition  of  Alexander  the  Great  left 
hardly  any  permanent  result,  except  upon 
Buddhist  art,  and  the  conquests  of 
Mahmud  of  Ghazni  opened  no  road  to 
the  East  from  the  Mediter- 
ranean West.     Nor  did  China, 


Isolation 
of  Eastern 
Peoples 


though  visited  by  Italian 
travellers  in  the  thirteenth 
century,  by  Portuguese  traders  and  Jesuit 
missionaries  in  the  sixteenth  and  seven- 
teenth, come  into  effective  contact  with 
Europe  till  near  our  own  time. 

As  the  wastes  of  barren  land  formed  an 
almost  impassable  eastern  boundary  to 
the  West  Asian  civihsations,  so  on  the 
west  the  expanse  of  sea  brought  Egypt 
and  to  a  less  extent  Assyria  (through 
Phoenicia)  into  touch  with  all  the  peoples 
who  dwelt  on  the  shores  of  the  Mediter- 
ranean. The  first  agents  in  the  diffusion 
of  trade  and  the  arts  were  the  Phoenicians, 
established  at  Tyre,  Sidon,  and  Carthage. 
The  next  were  the  Greeks.  For  more 
than  two  thousand  years,  from  B.C.  700 
onwards,  the  Mediterranean  is  practically 
the  centre  of  the  history  of  the  world, 
because  it  is  the  highway  both  of  com- 
merce and  of  war.  For  seven  hundred  years 
after  the  end  of  the  second  century  B.C., 
that  is  to  say,  while  the  Roman  Empire 
remained  strong,  it  was  also  the  highway 
of  civil  administration.  The  Saracen  con- 
quests of  the  seventh  century  cut  off 
North  Africa  and  Syria  from  Europe, 
a.  checked  transmarine  commerce,  and 
figrreated  afresh  the  old  opjwsition  of  East 

2426 


and  West  in  which  a  thousand  years 
earlier  Herodotus  had  found  the  main 
thread  of  world  history.  But  it  was 
not  till  after  the  discovery  of  America 
that  the  Mediterranean  began  to  yield 
to  the  Atlantic  its  primacy  as  the  area  of 
sea  power  and  sea-borne  trade. 

Bordered  by  far  less  fertile  and  climate- 

-  „  favoured  countries,  and  closed 

Influence        ,  •      .•  ,      - 

of  the  Seas  *°  navigation  during  some 
.    „.  months  of  winter,    the    Baltic 

has  always  held  a  place  in  his- 
tory far  below  that  of  the  Mediterranean. 
Yet  it  has  determined  the  relations  of  the 
North  European  states  and  peoples.  So, 
too,  the  North  Sea  has  at  one  time  exposed 
Britain  to  attack  from  the  Danish  and 
Norwegian  lords  of  the  sea,  and  at  other 
times  protected  her  from  powerful  con- 
tinental enemies.  It  may  indeed  be  said 
that  in  surrounding  Europe  by  the  sea 
on  three  sides.  Nature  has  drawn  the 
main  lines  which  the  course  of  events  on 
this  smallest  but  most  important  of  the 
continents  has  had  to  follow. 

Of  the  part  which  the  great  bodies  of 
water  have  played,  of  the  significance  in 
the  oceans  of  mighty  currents  like  the 
Gulf  Stream,  the  Polar  Current,  the  Japan 
Current,  the  Mozambique  Current,  it 
would  be  impossible  to  speak  within 
reasonable  compass.  But  two  remarks 
may  be  made  before  leaving  this  part  of 
the  subject.  One  is  that  man's  action 
in  cutting  through  an  isthmus  may 
completely  alter  the  conditions  as  given 
by  Nature.  The  Suez  Canal  has  of  late 
years  immensely  enhanced  the  importance 
of  the  Mediterranean,  already  in  some 
degree  restored  by  the  decay  of  Turkish 
power,  by  the  industrial  revival  of  Italy, 
and  by  the  French  conquests  in  North 
Africa.  The  cutting  of  a  canal  at  Panama 
will  change  the  relations  of  the  seafaring 
and  fleet-owning  nations  that  are  interested 
in  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific.  And  the 
other  remark  is  that  the  significance  of  a 
maritime  discovery,  however 

Magellan  ^^^^^  ^^  ^^^^^^  ^^y  bg^ome  still 

PoHti«  """  greater  with  the  lapse  of  time. 
Magellan,  in  his  ever  memo- 
rable voyage,  not  only  penetrated  to  and 
crossed  the  Pacific,  but  discovered  the 
Philij^pine  Islands,  and  claimed  them  for 
the  monarch  who  had  sent  him  forth. 
His  apjiropriation  of  them  for  the  Crown 
of  Spain,  to  which  during  these  three 
centuries  and  a  half  they  have  brought 
no  benefit,  has  been  the  cause  which  has 


HOW    NATURE    DETERMINES    THE    SITES    OF    CITIES 

Most   towns    and   communities    founded   more    than   300   years   ago    were   on    easily   defensible  hUls 

Port  Id^hnf  «^f' m"^^",'.  °'    ''K%  °^   *'^^  ^^^-      O"--  iUustrations    show   (r)    Naples      zrBonsuna, 
Port  and  hill  of  Marseilles,    (4)    Monaco,   (5)    St.    Ct^zaire,  and  (6)  the   Greek    Monastery  of  St. 

Photos,  by  Frith  and  Underwood  &  Underwood 


by  the 

(3}   Old 

Balaam. 


2; 


k^/ij 


'^:::^. 


''  '  ii  V"  5o6ntA«» ;  •     .. 


■.«A..;--...l->fTa      ■  ■"  '■"'*         '   *" 


Dtoltitiil 


Ar  t  Phili 


THE    SHIFTING    OF    THE    CENTRE    OF    THE    WORLDS    COMMERCE 
These  two  maps, which  have  been  very  carefully  prepared  from  the  most  reliable  authorities,  indicate  at  a  glance  the  rela- 
tive importance  of  the  Mediterranean  and  the  Atlantic  as  highways  of  commerce  in  the  time  of  Julius  Caesar,  B.C.  102-44. 


led  the  republic  of  the  United  States 
to  depart  from  its  traditional  policy  of 
holding  to  its  own  continent  by  taking 
them  a.s  a  prize — a  distant  and  unex- 
pected prize — of  conquest. 

A  few  words  may  sufftce  as  to  what 
Nature  has  done  towards  the  formation  of 
nations  and  States  by  the  configuration  of 
the  surface  of  the  dry  land — that  is  to  say, 

28 


by  mountain  chains  and  by  river  valleys. 
The  only  natural  boundaries,  besides 
seas,  are  mountains  and  deserts.  Rivers, 
though  convenient  frontier  lines  for  the 
politician  or  the  geographer,  are  not 
natural  boundaries,  but  rather  unite  than 
dissever  those  who  dwell  on  their  opposite 
banks.  Thus  the  great  natural  boundaries 
in  Asia  have  been  the  deserts  of  Eastern 


;,.-*;. 


■■V-.aIU,      ..-•^^-;'".--.-..  W  ^•■,<^  .^^'^■.<-  J^.-//-/    r/  *"""";' 


:Mqdet'<i>.W::  /  /X  _ 


PACIFIC 


ri^Kir.^'-"- 


•■^  ^^^//\v,\^   %X   /^/  (Ml?  l^^iH^i^^'-^ 


R        u 


•'*^- 1 


<^<r.M<iJ^- 


:7    Lr.o./o     ^  S-'^SiSL '^'^^*'*SJ!''^!^*'54<: 


^>  v?^ 


6.'£  /R  C  /<  5  if  /= 


Va/«l^]| 


HOW  THE  MEDITERRANEAN  HAS  GIVEN  PLACE  TO  THE  ATLANTIC 


Here  is  the  contrast  to  the  opposite  page.     In  our  time  the  Atlantic  has  become  the  centre  of  the  world's  commerce  and 
the  Mediterranean  has  sunk  in  importance.    It  would  be  almost  deserted  but  for  the  routes  to  India  via  the  Suez  Canal. 


Persia,  of  Turkestan,  and  of  Northern 
Arabia,  with  the  long  Himalayan  chain 
and  the  savage  ranges  apparently  parallel 
to  the  Iravvadi  River,  which  separate  the 
easternmast  corner  of  India  and  Burmah 
from  South-Western  China.  To  a  less 
extent  the  Altai  and  Thian  Shan,  and,  to  a 
still  smaller  extent,  the  Taurus  in  Eastern 


Asia  Minor,  have  tended  to  divide  peoples 
and  States.  The  Caucasus,  which  fills  the 
space  between  two  great  seas,  has  been  at 
all  times  an  extremely  important  factor  in 
history,  severing  the  nomad  races  of  Scy- 
thia  from  the  more  civihsed  and  settled 
inhabitants  of  the  valleys  of  the  Phasis 
and  the   Kura.     Even  to-day,  when  the 

29 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Tsar  holds  sway  on  both  sides  of  this  chain, 
it  constitutes  a  weakness  in  the  position  of 
Russia,  and  it  helps  to  keep  the  Georgian 
races  to  the  south  from  losing  their  iden- 
tity in  the  mass  of  Russian  subjects. 

Without  the  Alps  and  the  Pyrenees,  the 
annals  of  Europe  must  have  been  entirely 
different.  The  Alps,  even  more  than  the 
Italian  climate,  proved  too 
The  Place  ^^^^j^  ^^^  ^-^^  Romano-Ger- 
of  Mountains  ^^^^-^  Emperors  of  the  Middle 
in  H.Story         ^^^^^  ^^j^^  ^^.j^^  ^^    ^.^j^    ^^^^ 

to  the  north  and  to  the  south  of  this  wide 
mountain  region.  The  Pyrenees  have  not 
only  kept  in  existence  the  Basque  people, 
but  have  repeatedly  frustrated  the  attempts 
of  monarchs  to  dominate  both  France  and 
Spain.  The  mass  of  high  moorland  country 
which  covers  most  of  the  space  between 
the  Solvvay  Firth  and  the  lower  course  of 
the  Tweed  has  had  something  to  do  with 
the  formation  of  a  Scottish  nation  out  of 
singularly  diverse  elements.  The  rugged 
mountains  of  Northern  and  Western 
Scotland,  and  the  similar  though  less 
extensive  hill  country  of  Wales,  have  en- 
abled Celtic  races  to  retain  their  language 
and  character  in  both  these  regions. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  vast  open  plains 
of  Russia  have  allowed  the  Slavs  of  the 
districts  which  lie  round  Novgorod,  Mos- 
cow, and  Kiev  to  spread  out  among  and 
Russify  the  Lithuanian  and  Finnish,  to 
some  extent  also  the  Tartar,  races,  who 
originally  held  by  far  the  larger  part  of  that 
area.  So,  too,  the  Ural  range,  which, 
though  long,  is  neither  high  nor  difficult 
to  pass,  has  opposed  no  serious  obstacle  to 
the  overflow  of  population  from  Russia 
into  Siberia.  That  in  North  America  the 
.Alleghanies  have  had  a  comparatively 
slight  effect  upon  })olitical  history,  although 
they  did  for  a  time  arrest  the  march  of 
colonisation,  is  due  partly  to  the  fact  that 
they  are  a  mass  of  comi)aratively  low 
parallel  ranges,  with  fertile  valleys  be- 
tween, partly  to  the  already  advanced  civi- 
lisation of  the  Anglo-Ameri- 
cans of  the  Atlantic  seaboard, 
who  found  no  great  difficulty 
in  making  their  way  across, 
against  the  uncertain  resistance  of  small 
and  non-cohesive  Indian  tribes.  A  far  more 
formidable  natural  barrier  is  formed  be- 
tween the  Mississip])i  Valley  and  the  Pacific 
slope  by  the  Rocky  Mountains,  with  the  de- 
serts of  Arizona,  Utah,  Nevada,  and  Idaho. 
But  the  discovery  of  steam  power  has  so 
much  reduced  the  importance  of  this  barrier 

30 


What 

Steam-power 
has  Done 


that  it  does  not  seriously  threaten  the  main- 
tenance of  a  united  American  republic. 

In  one  respect  the  New  World  presents 
a  remarkable  contrast  to  the  Old.  The 
eirliest  civilisations  of  the  latter  seem  to 
have  sprung  up  in  fertile  river  valleys. 
Those  of  the  former  are  found  not  on  the 
banks  of  streams  like  the  Nile  or  Euphra- 
tes, but  on  elevated  plateaux,  where  the 
heat  of  a  tropical  sun  is  mitigated  by 
height  above  sea  level.  It  was  in  the  lofty 
lake  basin  of  Tezcuco  and  Mexico,  and  on 
the  comparatively  level  ground  which  lies 
between  the  parallel  ranges  of  the  Peruvian 
and  Bolivian  Andes,  that  American  races 
had  reached  their  finest  intellectual  deve- 
lopment, not  in  the  far  richer,  but  also 
hotter  and  less  healthy  river  valleys  of 
Brazil,  or  (unless  we  are  to  except  Yucatan) 
on  the  scorching  shores  of  the  Caribbean 
Sea.  Nature  was  in  those  regions  too  strong 
for  man,  and  held  him  down  in  savagery. 

In  determining  the  courses  of  great 
rivers,  Nature  has  determined  the  first 
highways  of  trade  and  fixed  the  sites  of 
many  cities.  Nearly  all  the  considerable 
towns  founded  more  than  three  centuries 
ago  owe  their  origin  either  to  their  pos^ 
„       ^,  sessing  good  havens  on   the 

How  Nature    ^^^.^^^^^    ^^  ^o  the  natural 
fixes  oites  ,  iu       r  ^i     •  -a- 

J.  ^.  .  strength  of  their  })osition  on 

a  defensible  hill,  or  to  their 
standing  close  to  a  navigable  river.  Mar- 
seilles, Alexandria,  New  York,  Rio  de 
Janeiro,  are  instances  of  the  first  ;  Athens, 
Edinburgh,  Prague,  Moscow,  of  the  second ; 
Bordeaux,  Cologne,  New  Orleans,  Calcutta, 
of  the  third.  Rome  and  London,  Buda- 
pest, and  Lyons  combine  the  advantages 
of  the  second  with  those  of  the  third.  This 
function  of  rivers  in  directing  the  hnes  of 
commerce  and  the  growth  of  centres  of  popu- 
lation has  become  much  less  important 
since  the  construction  of  railroads,  yet 
population  tends  to  stay  where  it  has  been 
first  gathered,  so  that  the  fluviatile  cities 
are  likely  to  retain  their  preponderance. 
Thus  the  river  is  as  important  to  the  his- 
torian as  is  the  mountain  range  or  the  sea. 
From  the  j:)hysical  features  of  a  country 
it  is  an  easy  transition  to  the  capacities 
of  the  soil.  The  character  of  the  products 
of  a  region  determines  the  numbers  of  its 
inhabitants  and  the  kind  of  life  they  lead. 
A  land  of  forests  breeds  hunters  or  lumber- 
men ;  a  land  of  pasture,  which  is  too 
rough  or  too  arid  or  too  sterile  for  tillage, 
supports  shepherds  or  herdsmen  probably 
more  or  less  nomadic.    Either  kind  of  land 


INTRODUCTION  BY  RT.  HON.  VF COUNT  BRYCE 


supports  inhabitants  few  in  proportion  to 
its  area.  Fertile  and  well-watered  regions 
rear  a  denser,  a  more  settled,  and  presum- 
ably a  more  civilised  population.  Norway 
and  Tyrol,  Tibet  and  Wyoming,  and  the 
Orange  River  Colony,  can  never  become  so 
densely  peopled  as  Bengal  or  Illinois  or 
Lombardy,  yet  the  fisheries  of  its  coast  and 

the  seafaring  energy  of  its  people 

have  sensibly  increased  the  po- 
J*  pulation  of  Norway.    Thus  he 

who  knows  the  climate  and  the 
productive  capacity  of  the  soil  of  any 
given  country  can  calculate  its  prospects 
of  prosperity.  Political  causes  may,  of 
course,  intervene.  Asia  Minor  and  the 
Valley  of  the  Euphrates,  regions  once 
populous  and  flourishing,  are  now  thinly 
inhabited  and  poverty-stricken  because 
they  are  ruled  by  the  Turks. 

But  these  cases  are  exceptional.  Bengal 
and  Lombardy  and  Egypt  have  supported 
large  populations  under  all  kinds  of  govern- 
ment. The  products  of  each  country  tend, 
moreover,  to  establish  definite  relations 
between  it  and  other  countries,  and  do  this 
all  the  more  as  population,  commerce,  and 
the  arts  advance.  When  England  was  a 
great  wool-growing  and  wool-exporting 
country,  her  wool  export  brought  her  into 
close  political  connection  with  the  wool- 
manufacturing  Flemish  towns.  She  is  now 
a  cotton-manufacturing  country,  needing 
cotton  which  she  cannot  grow  at  all,  and 
consuming  wheat  which  she  does  not 
grow  in  sufficient  quantities.  Hence  she  is 
in  close  commercial  relations  with  the 
United  States  on  one  side,  which  give  her 
most  of  her  cotton  and  much  of  her  wheat, 
and  with  India,  from  which  she  gets  both 
these  articles,  and  to  which  she  exports 
a  large  part  of  her  manufactured  cotton 
goods. 

So  Rom.e,  because  she  needed  the  corn 
of  Egypt,  kept  Egypt  under  a  specially 
careful  administration.  The  rest  of  her 
corn  came  from  Sicily  and  North  Africa, 

and    the    Vandal    conquest    of 
mmon       js^orth  Africa  dealt   a  frightful 
Needs  make  1,         ,        ,,       j      i-    •         t-        • 
-     p  blow  to   the  dechnmg  Empire. 

In  these  cases  the  common 
interest  of  sellers  and  buyers  makes  for 
peace,  but  in  other  cases  the  competition 
of  countries  desiring  to  keep  commerce  to 
themselves  occasions  war.  The  Spanish 
and  Dutch  fought  over  the  trade  to  India 
in  the  earlier  part  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury, when  the  Portuguese  Indies  belonged 
to  Spain,  as  the  EngUsh  and  French  fought 


in  the  eighteenth.  And  a  nation,  especially 
an  insular  nation,  whose  arable  soil  is  not 
large  enough  or  fertile  enough  to  provide 
all  the  food  it  needs,  has  a  powerful  induce- 
ment either  to  seek  peace  or  else  to  be 
prepared  for  maritime  war.  If  such  a 
country  does  not  grow  enough  corn  or 
meat  at  home,  she  must  have  a  navy 
strong  enough  to  make  sure  that  she  will 
always  be  able  to  get  these  necessaries 
from  abroad.  Attica  did  not  produce  all 
the  grain  seeded  to  feed  the  Athenians, 
so  they  depended  on  the  corn  ships  which 
came  down  from  the  Euxine,  and  were 
practically  at  the  mercy  of  an  enemy  who 
could  stop  those  ships. 

Of  another  natural  source  of  wealth,  the 
fisheries  on  the  coast  of  a  country,  no 
more  need  be  said  than  that  they  have 
been  a  frequent  source  of  quarrels  and  even 
of  war.  The  recognition  of  the  right  of  each 
state  to  the  exclusive  control  and  enjoy- 
ment of  the  sea  for  three  miles  off  its  shores 
has  reduced,  but  not  entirely  removed,  the 
causes  of  friction  between  the  fishermen 
of  different  countries. 

Until  recently,  the  surface  of  the  soil 
was  a  far  more  important 
source  of  wealth  than  was  that 
which  lies  beneath  the  surface. 
There  were  iron  mines  among 
the  Chalybes  on  the  Asiatic  coast  of  the 
Euxine  in  ancient  times  ;  there  were  silver 
mines  here  and  there,  the  most  famous 
being  those  at  Laurium,  from  which  the 
Athenians  drew  large  revenues,  gold  mines 
in  Spain  and  Dacia,  copper  mines  in  Elba, 
tin  mines  in  the  south-west  corner  of 
Britain.  But  the  number  of  persons 
employed  in  mining  and  the  industries 
connected  therewith  was  relatively  small 
both  in  the  ancient  world  and,  indeed, 
down  till  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury. The  immense  development  of  coal- 
mining and  of  iron-working  in  connection 
therewith  has  now  doubled,  trebled,  or 
quadrupled  the  population  of  large  areas 
in  Britain,  Germany,  France,  Belgium,  and 
the  United  States,  adding  vastly  to  the 
wealth  of  these  countries  and  stimulating 
in  them  the  growth  of  many  mechanical 
arts.  This  new  population  is  quite  different 
in  character  from  the  agricultural  peasan- 
try who  in  earlier  days  formed  the  principal 
substratum  of  society.  Its  appearance  has 
changed  the  internal  politics  of  these 
countries,  disturbing  the  old  balance  of 
forces  and  accelerating  the  progress  of 
democratic  principles. 

31 


Miner&ls 

and 

Civilisation 


INTRODUCTION    BY   RT.    HON.    VISCOUNT    BRYCE 


Nor  have  minerals  failed  to  affect  the 
international  relations  of  peoples  and 
States.  It  was  chiefly  for  the  precious 
metals  that  the  Spaniards  explored  the 
American  Continent  and  conquered  Mexico 
and  Peru.  It  was  for  the  sake  of  capturing 
the  ships  bringing  those  metals  back 
to  Europe  that  the  English  sea-rovers  made 
their  way  to  the  American  coasts  and 
involved  England  in  wars  with  Spain. 
It  was  the  discovery  in  1885  of  extensive 
auriferous  strata  unexampled  in  the  cer- 
tainty of  their  yield  that  drew  a  swarm 
of  foreign  immigrants  into  the  Transvaal, 
whence  arose  those  difficulties  between 
them  and  the  Dutch  inhabitants  pre- 
viously established  there  which,  coupled 
with  the  action  of  the  wealthy  owners  of 
the  mines,  led  at  last  to  the  war  of  1899 
between  Britain  and  the  two  South  African 
Republics. 

The  productive  capacity  of  a  country  is, 
however,  in  one  respect  very  different  from 
those  great  physical  features — such  as  tem- 
perature, rainfall,  coast  configuration, 
surface  character,  geological  structure,  and 
river  system — which  have  been  previously 
noted.  Those  features  are 
***'^'*  permanent  qualities  which  man 

Fight  with     ^^^   ^^^^^   Qj^ly  ^Q   ^    hmited 

Nature  extent,  as  when  he  reduces  the 
rainfall  a  little  by  cutting  down  forests,  or 
increases  it  by  planting  them,  or  as  when 
he  unites  an  isle,  hke  that  of  Cadiz,  to 
the  mainland,  cuts  through  an  isthmus, 
like  that  of  Corinth,  or  clears  away  the 
bar  at  a  river  mouth,  as  that  of  the 
Mississippi  has  been  cleared. 

But  the  natural  products  of  a  country 
may  be  exhausted  and  even  the  productive 
capacity  of  its  soil  diminished.  Constant 
tillage,  especially  if  the  same  crop  be 
raised  and  no  manure  added,  will  wear  out 
the  richest  soils.  This  has  already  hap- 
pened in  parts  of  Western  America.  Still 
the  earth  is  there  ;  and  with  rest  and  arti- 
ficial help  it  will  recover  its  strength.  But 
timber  destroyed  cannot  always  be  induced 
to  grow  again,  or  at  least  not  so  as  to 
equal  the  vigour  of  primeval  forests.  Wild 
animals,  once  extirpated,  are  gone  for  ever. 
The  buffalo  and  beaver  of  North  America, 
the  beautiful  lynxes  of  South  Africa  and 
some  of  its  large  ruminants,  are  irrecover- 
ably lost  for  the  purposes  of  human  use, 
just  as  much  as  the  dinornis,  though  a  few 
individuals  may  be  kept  alive  as  specimens. 
So,  too,  the  mineral  resources  of  a  country 
are  not  only  consumable,  but  obviously 


irreplaceable.  Already  some  of  the  smaller 
coalfields  of  Europe  have  been  worked  out, 
while  in  others  it  has  become  necessary  to 
sink  much  deeper  shafts,  at  an  increas- 
ing cost.  There  is  not  much  tin  left  in 
Cornwall,  not  much  gold  in  the  gravel 
deposits  of  Northern  California.  The  richest 
known  goldfield  of  the  world,  that  of 
the  Transvaal  Witwatersrand, 
Exhausting  ^^^  hardly  last  more  than 
the  Mineral  ^j^j^.^^  ^^  ^^^.^y  y^^j.^^  j^^^  j^ 
Wealth  ^  ^^^  centuries  the  productive 
capacity  of  many  regions  may  have  be- 
come quite  different  from  what  it  is  now, 
with  grave  consequences  to  their  inhabi- 
tants. 

These  are  some  of  the  ways  in  which 
Nature  affects  those  economic,  social,  and 
poHtical  conditions  of  the  life  of  man  the 
changes  in  which  make  up  history.  As 
we  have  seen,  that  which  Nature  gives 
to  man  is  always  the  same,  in  so  far  as 
Nature  herself  is  always  the  same — an 
expression  which  is  more  popular  than 
accurate,  for  Nature  herself — that  is  to  say, 
not  the  laws  of  Nature,  but  the  physical 
environment  of  man  on  this  planet — is  in 
reality  always  changing.  It  is  true  that 
this  environment  changes  so  slowly 
that  a  thousand  years  may  be  too 
short  a  period  in  which  man  can  note 
and  record  some  forms  of  change — such, 
for  instance,  as  that  by  which  the  tem- 
perature of  Europe  became  colder  during 
the  approach  of  the  glacial  period  and 
warmer  during  its  recession — while  ten 
thousand  years  maybe  too  short  to  note 
any  diminution  in  the  heat  which  the 
sun  pours  upon  the  earth,  or  in  the  store 
of  oxygen  which  the  earth's  atmosphere 
holds.' 

But  as  we  have  also  seen,  the  relation  to 
man  of  Nature's  gifts  differs  from  age  to  age 
as  man  himself  becomes  different,  and  as 
his  power  of  using  these  gifts  increases,  or 
his  need  of  them  becomes  either  less  or 
greater.  Every  invention  alters  those  rela- 
tions. Water  power  became  less 
Progress  relatively  valuable  when  steam. 
of  Modern  ^^^^  applied  to  the  generation 
Invention  ^^  motive  force.  It  has  become 
more  valuable  with  the  new  apphcations  of 
electricity.  With  the  discovery  of  mineral 
dyes,  indigo  and  cochineal  are  now  less 
wanted  than  they  were.  With  the  inven- 
tion of  the  pneumatic  tyre  for  bicycles 
and  carriages,  caoutchouc  is  more  wanted. 
Mountains  have  become,  since  the  mak- 
ing of  railways,  less  of  an  obstacle  to  trade 

33 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


than  they  were,  and  they  have  also  be- 
come more  available  as  health  resorts. 
Political  circumstances  may  interfere 
with  the  ordinary  and  normal  action 
of  natural  phenomena.  A  race  may  be 
attracted  to  or  driven  into  a  region  for 
which  it  is  not  physically  suited,  as  Euro- 
peans have  gone  to  the  West  Indies, 
^      -  and  negroes  were  once  carried 

an    anno    -^^^  New  York  and   Pennsyl- 

Disregard  ~,  r    i.      j 

j^  vania.       Ihe  course  of  trade 

which  Nature  prescribes  be- 
tween different  countries  may  be  ham- 
pered or  stopped  by  protective  tariffs  ; 
but  in  these  cases  Nature  usually  takes 
her  eventual  revenges.  They  are  in- 
stances which  show,  not  that  man  can 
disregard  her,  but  that  when  he  does  so, 
he  does  so  to  his  own  loss. 

It  would  be  easy  to  add  further  illustra- 
tions, but  those  already  given  are  sufficient 
to  indicate  how  multiform  and  pervading 
is  the  action  upon  man  of  the  physical 
environment,  or  in  other  words,  how  in  all 
countries,  and  at  all  times,  geography 
is  the  necessary  foundation  of  history,  so 
that  neither  the  course  of  a  nation's 
growth,  nor  its  relations  with  other  nations, 
can  be  grasped  by  one  who  has  not 
come  to  understand  the  climate,  surface, 
and  products  of  the  country  wherein 
that  nation  dwells. 

This  conception  of  the  relation  of  geo- 
graphy to  history  is,  as  has  been  said, 
the  leading  idea  of  the  present  work,  and 
has  furnished  the  main  lines  which  it 
follows.  It  deals  with  history  in  the  light 
of  physical  environment.  Its  ground 
plan,  so  to  speak,  is  primarily  geographi- 
cal, and  secondarily  chronological.  But 
there  is  one  difficulty  in  the  way  of  such 
a  scheme,  and  of  the  use  of  such  a  ground 
j)lan,  which  cannot  be  passed  over.  That 
difficulty  is  suggested  by  the  fact  already 
noted — that  hardly  any  considerable  race, 
and  possibly  no  great  nation,  now  in- 
habits the  particular  part  of  the  earth's 
surface  on  which  it  was  dwell- 


There  IS  1                  v-    .             1        • 

,,     .     .  nig    when    a   history    begins. 

no  Unmixed  -'^     -                              .    -?           P. 
Race  left 


Nearly  every  peoj)le  has  either 
migrated  bodily  from  one 
region  to  another,  or  has  received  such 
large  infusions  of  immigrants  from  other 
regions  as  to  have  become  practically  a 
new  people.  Hence  it  is  rare  to  find  any 
nation  now  living  under  the  physical  con- 
ditions which  originally  moulded  its  char- 
acter, or  the  character  of  some  at  least 
of  its  component  elements.    And  hence  it 

34 


follows  that  when  we  study  the  qualities, 
aptitudes,  and  institutions  of  a  nation  in 
connection  with  the  land  it  inhabits,  we 
must  always  have  regard  not  merely  to 
the  features  of  that  land,  but  also  to 
those  of  the  land  which  was  its  earlier 
dwelling-place.  Obviously,  this  brings 
a  disturbing  element  into  the  study  of 
the  relations  between  land  and  people, 
and  makes  the  whole  problem  a  far  more 
compHcated  one  than  it  appeared  at  first 
sight. 

Where  a  people  has  migrated  from  a 
country  whose  physical  conditions  were 
similar  to  those  under  which  its  later  life 
is  spent,  or  where  it  had  reached  only  a 
comparatively  low  stage  of  economic  and 
political  development  before  the  migra- 
tion, the  difficulties  arising  from  this 
source  are  not  serious.  The  fact  that  the 
English  came  into  Britain  from  the  lands 
round  the  mouth  of  the  Elbe  is  not 
very  material  to  an  inquiry  into  their  re- 
lations to  their  new  home,  because  climate 
and  soil  were  similar,  and  the  emigrants 
were  a  rude,  warlike  race.  But  when  we 
come  to  the  second  migration  of  the  English, 
,         from  Britain  to  North  America, 

a  ure  s       ^j^^     ^^^    ^^    altogether    dif- 

P  terent.     Groups   ot  men   from 

a  people  which  had  already 
become  highly  civilised,  had  formed  a 
well-marked  national  character,  and  had 
created  a  body  of  peculiar  institutions, 
planted  themselves  in  a  country  whose 
climate  and  physical  features  are  widely 
diverse  from  those  of  Britain. 

If,  for  the  sake  of  argument,  we  assume 
the  Algonquin  aborigines  of  Atlantic  North 
America  as  they  were  in  a.d.  iOoo  to  have 
been  the  legitimate  product  of  their 
physical  environment — I  say  "  for  the 
sake  of  argument,"  because  it  may  be 
alleged  that  other  forces  than  those  of 
physical  environment  contributed  to  form 
them — what  greater  contrast  can  be 
imagined  than  the  contrast  between  the 
inhabitants  of  New  England  in  this  present 
year  and  the  inhabitants  of  the  same 
district  three  centuries  earlier,  as  Nature, 
and  Nature  alone,  had  turned  them  out  of 
her  factory  ?  Plainly,  therefore,  the  history 
of  the  United  States  cannot,  so  far  as 
Nature  and  geography  are  concerned,  be 
written  with  regard  solely,  or  even  chiefly, 
to  the  conditions  of  North  American  na- 
ture. The  physical  environment  in  which 
the  English  immigrants  found  themselves 
on  that  continent  has  no  doubt  affected 


INTRODUCTION    BY   RT.    HON.   VISCOUNT   BRYCE 


their  material  progress  and  the  course  of 
their  politics  during  the  three  centuries 
that  have  elapsed  since  settlements  were 
founded  in  Virginia  and  on  Massachusetts 
Bay. 

But  it  is  not  to  that  environment,  but 
to  earlier  days,  and  especially  to  the  twelve 
centuries  during  which  their  ancestors 
lived  in  England,  that  their  character  and 
institutions  are  to  be  traced.  Thus  the 
history  of  the  American  people  begins  in 
the  forests  of  Germany,  where  the  foun- 
dations of  their  polity  were  laid,  and  is 
continued  in  England,  where  they  set  up 
kingdoms,  embraced  Christianity,  became 
one  nation,  received  an  influx  of  Celtic, 
Danish,  and  Norman-French  blood,  for- 
med for  themselves  that  body  of  customs, 
laws,  and  institutions  which  they  trans- 
planted to  the  new  soil  of  America,  and 
most  of  which,  though  changed  and  always 
changing,  they  still  retain.  The  same 
thing  is  true  of  the  Spaniards  (as  also  of 
the  Portuguese)  in  Central  and  South 
America.  The  difference  be- 
Bcginnmgs  ^^^^^^^  ^-^^  development  of  the 
of  Race  Hispano-Americans  and  that  of 
History  ^^^-^  Enghsh  neighbours  to  the 
north  is  not  wholly,  or  even  mainly,  due  to 
the  different  physical  conditions  under 
which  the  two  sets  of  colonistK  have  lived. 
It  is  due  to  the  different  antecedent 
history  of  the  two  races.  So  a  history  of 
America  must  be  a  history  not  only  of 
America,  but  of  the  Spaniards,  Portuguese, 
French,  and  Enghsh — one  ought  in  strict- 


ness to  add  of  the  negroes  also — before 
they  crossed  the  Atlantic.  The  only 
true  Americans,  the  only  Americans  for 
whom  American  nature  can  be  deemed 
answerable,  are  the  aboriginal  red  men 
whom  we,  perpetuating  the  mistake  of 
Columbus,  still  call  Indians. 
This  objection  to  the  geographical  scheme 
of  history  wTiting  is  no  doubt 
Geography      ggj-ious    when      a     historical 


as  a  Basis 
of  History 


treatise  is  confined  to  one  par- 
ticular country  or  continent, 
as  in  the  instance  I  have  taken  of  the 
Continent  of  North  America.  It  is,  how- 
ever, less  formidable  in  a  universal  his- 
tory, such  as  the  present  work,  because, 
by  referring  to  another  volume  of  the 
series,  the  reader  will  find  what  he  needs 
to  know  regarding  the  history  of  the 
Spaniards,  English,  and  French  in  those 
respective  European  homes  where  they 
have  grown  to  be  that  which  they  were 
when,  with  religion,  slaughter,  and  slavery 
in  their  train,  they  descended  upon  the 
shores  of  America. 

Accordingly  the  difficulty  I  have  pointed 
out  does  not  disparage  the  idea  and  plan 
of  writing  universal  history  on  a  geogra- 
phical basis.  It  merely  indicates  a  caution 
needed  in  applying  that  plan,  and  a  con- 
dition indispensable  to  its  utility— viz., 
the  regard  that  must  be  had  to  the  stage 
of  progress  at  which  a  people  has  arrived 
when  it  is  subjected  to  an  environment 
different  from  that  which  had  in  the  first 
instance  helped  to  form  its  type. 


THE  GROWTH  OF  MODERN  KNOWLEDGE 


WE  have  now  considered  some  of  the 
ways  in  which  a  universal  history, 
written  with  special  reference  to  the 
physical  phenomena  of  the  earth  as  geo- 
graphical science  presents  them,  may  bring 
into  strong  relief  one  large  and  perma- 
nent set  of  influences  which  determine 
the  progress  or  retrogression  of  each 
several  branch  of  mankind.  Upon  the 
other  principles  which  preside  over  and 
direct  the  composition  of  such  a  work, 
not  much  need  be  said.  They  are,  of 
course,  in  the  main,  those  which  all 
competent  historians  will  follow  in 
writing  the  history  of  any  particular 
people. 

But  a  universal  history  which  endea- 
vours to  present  in  a  short  compass  a 
record  of  the  course  of  events  in  all 
regions   and     among     all    peoples,    since 


none  can  safely  be  omitted,  is  specially 
exposed  to  two  dangers.  One  is  that 
of  becoming  sketchy  and  viewy.  When 
a  large  object  has  to  be  dealt  with  on 
a  small  scale,  it  is  natural  to  sum  up  in 
a  few  broad  generalisations  masses  of 
facts  which  cannot  be  described  or  ex- 
amined in  detail.  Broad  generalisations 
are  valuable  when  they  proceed  from 
a  thoroughly  trained  mind  —  valuable, 
even  if  not  completely  verifiable,  because 
they  excite  reflection.  But  it  is  seldom 
possible  to  make  them  exact.  They  neces- 
sarily omit  most  of  the  exceptions,  and  thus 
suggest  a  greater  uniformity  than  exists. 

The  other  danger  is  that  of  sacrificing 
brightness  and  charm  of  presentation. 
When  an  effort  is  made  to  avoid  generah- 
sations,  and  to  squeeze  into  the  narrative 
as  many  facts  as  the  space  will  admit,  the 

35 


INTRODUCTION    BY   RT.    HON.   VISCOUNT    BRYCE 


narrative  is  apt  to  become  dry,  because 
compression  involves  the  curtailment  of 
the  personal  and  dramatic  element.  These 
are  the  rocks  between  which  every  his- 
torian has  to  steer.  If  he  has  ample  space, 
he  does  well  to  prefer  the  course  of  giving 
all  the  salient  facts  and  leaving  the  reader 
to  generalise  for  himself.  If,  however,  his 
space  is  limited,  as  must  needs 
^^'^^  .  be  the  lot  of  those  who  write 
of  Care  in  ^  universal  history,  the  impossi- 
History         ^j^-^^    ^^    ^^j^^g    -^^^^    minute 

detail  makes  generalisations  inevitable, 
for  it  is  through  them  that  the  result 
and  significance  of  a  multitude  of  minor 
facts  must  be  conveyed  in  a  condensed 
form. 

All  the  greater,  therefore,  becomes  the 
need  for  care  and  sobriety  in  the  forming 
and    setting     forth    every    summarising 
statement  and  general  conclusion  or  judg- 
ment.    Probably    the    soundest    guiding 
principle  and  best  safeguard  against  error 
is   to   be   found  in  shunning   all   precon- 
ceived hypotheses  which  seek  to  explain 
history  by  one  set  of  causes,  or  to  read  it 
in   the  light  of  one  idea.     The  habit  of 
magnifying  a  single   factor,   such  as  the 
social    factor,    or    the    economic,    or    the 
religious,    has    been    a    fertile    source    of 
weakness    in    historical    writing,    because 
it   has   made   the   presentation  of  events 
one-sided,      destroying      that      balance 
and   proportion   which   it   is   the   highest 
merit  of  any  historian  to  have  attained. 
Theory   and   generalisation    are    the   life- 
blood  of  history.   They  make  it  intelligible. 
They  give  it  unity.     They  convey  to  us 
the  instruction  which  it  always  contains, 
together     with     so     much     of     practical 
guidance    in    the    management    of    com- 
munities as  history  is  capable  of  rendering. 
Hut  they  need  to  be  applied  with  reserve, 
and  not  only  with  an  impartial  mind,  but 
after    a    painstaking    examination    of    all 
the   facts — whether   or  no   they  seem   to 
make  for  the  particular  theory 
New  Minds     stated— and  of  all  the  theories 
^^^   „  which  any  competent   predc- 

cessor  has  propounded. 
For  the  historian,  though  he  must  keep 
himself  from  falling  under  the  dominion 
of  any  one  doctrine  by  which  it  is  sought 
to  connect  and  explain  phenomena,  must 
welcome  all  the  light  which  any  such 
doctrine  can  throw  upon  facts.  Even  if 
such  a  doctrine  be  imperfect,  even  if  it 
be  tainted  by  error,  it  may  serve  to 
indicate    relations    between    facts,    or    to 


indicate  the  true  importance  of  facts, 
which  previous  writers  had  failed  to 
observe,  or  had  passed  too  lightly  over. 
It  is  thus  that  history  always  needs  to 
be  re-written.  History  is  a  progressive 
science,  not  merely  because  new  facts 
are  constantly  being  discovered,  not 
merely  because  the  changes  in  the  world 
give  to  old  facts  a  new  significance, 
but  also  because  every  truly  penetrating 
and  original  mind  sees  in  the  old  facts 
something  which  had  not  been  seen 
before. 

A  universal  history  is  fitted  to  correct 
such  defects  as  may  be  incident  to  that 
extreme  specialism  in  historical  writing 
which  is  now  in  fashion.  The  broad  and 
concise  treatment  which  a  history  of  all 
times  and  peoples  must  adopt  naturally 
leads  to  efforts  to  characterise  the  dom- 
inant features  and  tendency  of  an  epoch 
or  a  movement,  whether  social,  economic, 
or  political. 

Yet  even  here  there  is  a  danger  to  be 
guarded    against.     No    epoch,    no    move- 
ment, is  so  simple  as  it  looks  at  first  sight, 
or  as  one  would  gather  from  even  the  most 
honest     contemporary    writer. 
The  Side      jhere    is    always   an  eddy   at 
Streams        the  side  of  the  stream  ;  and  the 
of  History    stream  itself   is   the   resultant 
of   a    number   of  rivulets    with   different 
sources,  whose  waters,    if    the   metaphor 
may  be  extended,  are  of  different  tints. 
Let    any    man    study  minutely    a    given 
epoch,  such  as  that  of  the  Reformation 
in  Germany,  or  that  of  the  Revolutionary 
War  in  America,  and  he  will  be  surprised 
to   find   how   much   more   complex   were 
the  forces  at  work  than  he  had  at  first 
supposed,   and   on   how  much   smaller   a 
number  of  persons  than  he  had  fancied 
the  principal  forces  did  in  fact  directly 
operate.     Or    let    any    one — for    this    is 
perhaps   the   best,   if   the   most   difficult, 
method  of  getting  at  the  roots  of    Ihis 
complexity — study    thoroughly    and    dis- 
passionately the   phenomena  of  his  own 
time.     Let  him  observe  how  many  move- 
ments  go   on   simultaneously,   sometimes 
accelerating,    sometimes     retarding,    one 
another,  an  1  mark  how,  the  more  fully  he 
understands  this  complex  interlacing,  so 
much  the  less  confident  do  his  predictions 
of    the    future    become.     He    will    then 
realise  .how  hard  it  is  to  find  simple  ex- 
planations   and    to    deliver    exact    state- 
ments   regarding    critical    epochs    in    the 
past. 

37 


38 


THE    FIRST    INDUSTRIES:      POTTERY 
From  the  painting  by  Ferdinand  Cormon 


THE    FIRST    INDUSTRIES:     THE    FORGE 
From  the  painting  by  Ferdinand  Cormon 


39 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Nevertheless,  the  task  of  summarising 
and  explaining  is  one  to  which  the  writer 
of  a  History  of  the  World  must  address 
himself.  If  he  has  the  disadvantage  of 
limited  space,  he  has  the  advantage  of 
being  able  to  assume  the  reader's  know- 
ledge of  what  has  gone  before,  and  to 
invite  the  reader's  attention  to  what  will 
come  after.  Thus  he  stands  in  a  better 
position  than  does  the  writer  who  deals 
with  one  country  or  one  epoch  only  for 
making  each  part  of  history  illustrate 
other  parts,  for  showing  how  similar  social 
tendencies,  similar  proclivities  of  human 
nature,  work  similarly  under  varying 
conditions  and  are  followed  by  similar, 
though  never  identical,  results.  He  is 
able  to  bring  out  the  essential  unity  of 
history,  expunging  from  the  reader's 
mind  the  conventional  and  often  mis- 
leading distinctions  that  are  commonly 
drawn  between  the  ancient,  the  mediccval, 
and  the  modern  time.  He  can  bring  the 
contemporaneous  course  of  events  in 
different  countries  into  a  fruitful  relation. 
And  in  the  case  of  the  present  work,  which 
dwells  more  especially  on  the  geographical 

r...    ..  .       side  of  history,  he  can  illustrate 

The  Main       r  u  x         • 

_,  from  each  country   m  succes- 


of  History 


sion  the   influence  of  physical 


environment  on  the  formation 
of  races  and  the  progress  of  nations,  the 
principles  which  determine  the  action  of 
such  environment  being  everywhere  simi- 
lar, though  the  forms  which  that  action 
takes   are   infinitely  various. 

Is  there,  it  may  be  asked,  any  central 
thread  in  following  which  the  unity  of 
history  most  plainly  appears  ?  Is  there 
any  process  in  tracing  which  we  can  feel 
that  we  are  floating  down  the  main  stream 
of  the  world's  onward  movement  ?  If 
there  be  such  a  process,  its  study  ought 
to  help  us  to  realise  the  unity  of  history 
by  connecting  the  development  of  the 
numerous  branches  of  the  human  family. 

One  such  process  has  already  been 
adverted  to  and  illustrated.  It  is  the 
giadual  and  constant  increase  in  man's 
power  over  Nature,  whereby  he  is  emanci- 
pated more  and  more  from  the  conditions 
she  imposes  on  his  life,  yet  is  brought 
into  an  always  closer  touch  with  her  by 
the  discovery  of  new  methods  of  using 
her  gifts.  Two  other  such  jirocesses  may 
be  briefly  examined.  One  goes  on  in  the 
sjihere  of  time,  and  consists  in  the  accu- 
mulation from  age  to  age  of  the  strength, 
the  knowledge,  and  the  culture  of  man- 

40 


kind  as  a  whole.     The  other  goes  on  in 

space  as  well  as  in  time,    and    may  be 

described     as     the     contraction     of     the 

world,  relatively  to  man. 

The  accumulation  of  physical  strength 

is  most  apparent  in  the  increase  of  the 

human   race.     We   have   no   trustworthy 

data  for  determining  the  population,  even 

_,  ♦     °^  ^^y    ^^^   civilised  country, 

,    ^    '^^     more  than  a  century  and  a  half 
Increase  of  ,     ,  -^ 

„      ,  ..        ago  :    much  less  can   we   con- 
Population       °  ,  '        .-u    4.      {  4. 

]ecture  that  of  any  country  m 

primitive  or  prehistoric  times.     It  is  clear, 

however,    that  in  prehistoric  times — say, 

six  or  seven   thousand    years   ago,  there 

were  very  few  men  on  the  earth's  surface. 

The    scarcity    of    food    alone    would    be 

sufficient  to  prove  that ;    and,  indeed,  all 

our  data  go  to  show  it.      Fifty  years  ago 

the  world's  population  used  to  be  roughly 

conjectured  at  from  seven  to  nine  hundred 

millions,  two-thirds  of  them  in  China  and 

India.     It     is    now    estimated    at    over 

fifteen      hundred      millions.        That      of 

Europe  alone  must  have  tripled  within  a 

century,    and    can    hardly    be    less    than 

four  hundred  millions.      That   of    North 

America     may     have    scarcely    exceeded 

four     or     five      millions    in      the     time 

of  Christopher   Columbus,  or  at  the  date 

of  the   first   English  settlements,   though 

we   have   only   the   scantiest    data   for   a 

guess.     It  may  now  be  130,000,000,  for 

there  are  over  a  hundred  millions  in  the 

United    States    alone,    about    fifteen    in 

Mexico,  and  eight  in  Canada,  besides  the 

inhabitants  of  Central  America. 

The  increase  has  been  most  swift  in  the 
civilised  countries,  such  as  Britain,  Ger- 
many, Russia,  and  the  United  States ; 
but  it  has  gone  on  in  India  also  since 
India  came  under  British  rule  (famines 
notwithstanding),  and  in  the  regions 
recently  colonised  by  Europeans,  such  as 
Australia,  Siberia,  and  Argentina,  the 
disappearance  of  aborigines  being  far 
more  than  compensated  for  by  the  prolific 
p    IT     l^ower    of    the    white    immi- 

c    ro  I  ic    prj-j^iitc;.    Some  regions,  such  as 

,  "^f*^-"     ,     Asia  Minor  and  i)arts  of  North 

White  People     .[■  .11  11 

Airica,  are  more  thmly  peopled 

now   than    they  were   under   the    Roman 

limpire,   and  both  China  and  Peru  may 

have  no  larger  jiopulalion  than  they  had 

five,  or  ten.  or  fifteen  centuries  ago.     But 

taking  the  world  at  large,  the  increase  is 

enormous,  and  will  ajiparently  continue. 

Even   after   the   vjjcant  cultivable  spaces 

which     remain     in     the     two     Americas, 


INTRODUCTION    BY    RT.    HON.    VISCOUNT    BRYCE 


Physic&l  & 
Intellectual 
Power 


Northern  Asia,  and  Australasia  have  been 
filled,  the  discovery  of  new  modes  of 
enlarging  the  annually  available  stock  of 
food  may  maintain  the  increase.  It  is 
most  conspicuous  among  the  European 
races,  and  is,  of  course,  due  to  the  greater 
production  in  some  regions  of  food,  and 
in  others  of  commodities  wherewith  food 
can  be  purchased.  It  means 
an  immense  addition  to  the 
physical  force  of  mankind  in 
the  aggregate,  and  to  the 
possibilities  of  intellectual  force  also — a 
point  to  be  considered  later.  And,  of 
course,  it  also  means  an  immense  and 
growing  preponderance  of  the  civilised 
white  nations,  which  are  now  probably 
one  half  of  mankind,  and  may,  in 
another  century,  when  they  have  risen 
from  about  five  hundred  to,  possibly,  one 
thousand  or  fifteen  hundred  millions,  be 
nearly  two-thirds. 

As  respects  the  strength  of  the  average 
individual  man,  the  inquiry  is  less  simple. 
Palaeolithic  man  and  neolithic  man  were 
apparently  (though  here  and  there  may 
have  been  exceptions)  comparatively  feeble 
creatures,  as  are  the  relics  of  the  most 
backward  tribes  known  to  us,  such  as  the 
Veddas  of  Ceylon,  the  Bushmen,  the 
Fuegians.  Some  savages,  as,  for  instance, 
the  Patagonians,  are  men  of  great  stature, 
and  some  of  the  North  American  Indians 
possess  amazing  powers  of  endurance. 
The  Greeks  of  the  fifth  century  B.C.,  and 
the  Teutons  of  the  time  of  Julius  Caesar, 
had  reached  a  high  physical  development. 
Pheidippides  is  said  to  have  traversed  one 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  on  foot  in  forty- 
eight  hours.  But  if  we  think  of  single 
feats  of  strength,  feats  have  been  per- 
formed in  our  own  day — such  as  Captain 
Webb's  swimming  across  the  Straits  of 
Dover — equal  to  anything  recorded  from 
ancient  or  mediaeval  times.  To  swim 
across  the  much  narrower  Hellespont  was 
then  deemed  a  surprising  exploit.  Nor  do 
.,    ,       .,       we  know  of  any  race  more  to 

Modern  Man    ,  j    j     r  t,       •      i 

_^  ,.      be    commended    lor    physical 

Stronger  than  ,  r  ^^.l 

...         ^       power  and  vigour  oi  constitu- 
his  Ancestors  ;.        ,,  ,i        .  i       i 

tion  than  the  American  back- 
woodsmen of  Kentucky  or  Oregon  to-day. 
The  swords  used  by  the  knights  of  the 
fifteenth  century  have  usually  handles 
too  small  for  many  a  modern  English  or 
German  hand  to  grasp. 

Isolated  feats  do  not  prove  very  much, 
but  there  is  good  reason  to  believe  that 
the  average  European  is  as  strong  as  ever 


he  was,  and  probably  more  healthy,  at 
least  if  longevity  is  a  test  of  health. 
One  may  fairly  conclude  that  with  better 
and  more  abundant  food,  the  average  of 
stature  and  strength  has  improved  over 
the  world  at  large,  so  that  in  this  respect 
also  the  force  of  mankind  as  a  whole  has 
advanced.  Whether  this  advance  will 
continue  is  more  doubtful.  In  modern 
industrial  communities  the  law  of  the 
survival  of  the  fittest  may  turn  out  to  be 
reversed,  for  it  is  the  poorer  and  lower 
sections  of  the  population  that  marry  at 
an  early  age,  and  have  the  largest 
families,  while  prudential  considerations 
keep  down  the  birth-rate  among  the 
upper  middle-class.  In  Transylvania,  for 
instance,  the  Saxons  are  dying  out, 
because  very  few  children  are  born  to  each 
pair,  while  the  less  educated  and  cultured 
Rumans  increase  fast.  In  North  America, 
the  Old  New  England  stock  of  compara- 
tively pure  British  blood  has  begun  to  be 
swamped  by  the  offspring  of  the  recent 
immigrants,  mostly  Irish  or  French 
Canadians  ;  and  although  the  sons  of 
New  England,  who  have  gone  West, 
continue  to  be  prolific,  it  is 
probable  that  the  phenomena  of 
New  England  will  recur  in  the 
Mississippi  Valley,  and  that 
the  newcomers  from  Europe  who  form  the 
less  cultivated  strata  of  the  population — 
Irish,  Germans,  Italians,  Czechs,  Poles, 
Slovaks,  Rumans — will  contribute  an  in- 
creasing proportion  of  the  inhabitants. 
Some  of  these,  and  especially  the  Irish 
and  the  Germans  and  the  Scandinavians, 
are  among  the  best  elements  in  the 
American  population,  and  have  produced 
men  of  the  highest  distinction.  But  the 
average  level  among  them  of  versatile 
aptitude  and  of  intellectual  culture  is 
slightly  below  that  of  the  native  Americans. 
Now,  the  poorer  sections  are  in  most 
countries,  though  of  course  not  always  to 
the  same  extent,  somewhat  inferior  in 
physical  as  well  as  in  mental  quality, 
and  more  prone  to  suffer  from  that 
greatest  hindrance  to  physical  improve- 
ment, the  abuse  of  alcoholic  drinks. 

We  come  next  to  another  form  of  the 
increase  of  human  resources,  the  accumu- 
lation of  knowledge,  and  of  what  may  be 
called  intellectual  culture  and  capacity, 
for  it  is  convenient  to  distinguish  these 
two  latter  from  knowledge. 

In  knowledge  there  has  been  an 
advance,  not  merely  a  tolerably  steady 

41 


America's 

Mingled 

Races 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


and  constant  advciuce,  but  one  which  has 
gone  on  with  a  sort  of  geometrical  pro- 
gression, moving  the  faster  the  nearer 
we  come  to  our  own  time.  Whatever 
may  have  befallen  in  the 
prehistoric  darkness,  history 
knows  of  only  one  notable  arrest 
or  setback  in  the  onward 
march — that  which  marks  the  seventh, 
eighth,  and  ninth  centuries  of  the  Christian 
era.  Even  this  set-back  was  practically 
confined  to  Southern  and  Western  Europe, 
and  affected  only  certain  departments  of 


Inventions 

Mean 

Progress 


PIONEERS     OF'      MODERN     CIVILISATION 
The   discovery    of   precious    metals   is    a  great  factor  in   progress.      Seekers  after 
gold  are  chief  among  the  pioneers  who  help  to  carry  civilisation   into  new  lands. 

42 


knowledge.  It  did  not,  save,  perhaps,  as 
regards  a  few  artistic  processes,  extinguish 
that  extremely  important  part  of  the 
previously  accumulated  resources  of  man- 
kind which  consisted  in  the  knowledge 
of  inventions.  It  is  in  respect  of  inven- 
tions, especially  mechanical  and  physical 
or  chemical  inventions,  that  the  accumu- 
lation of  knowledge  has  been  most  note- 
worthy  and   most   easy  to   appreciate. 

A  history  of  inventions  is  a  history  of 
the  progress  of  mankind,  of  a  progress  to 
which  every  race  may  have  contributed 
in  primitive  times, 
though  all  the  later 
contributions  have 
come  from  a  few  of 
the  most  civilised. 
Every  great  inven- 
tion marks  one  on- 
ward step,  as  one 
may  see  by  enume- 
rating a  few,  such  as 
the  use  of  fire,  cook- 
ing, metal  working, 
the  domestication  ot 
wild  animals,  the 
tillage  of  the  ground, 
the  use  of  plough 
and  mattock  and 
harrow  and  fan,  the 
discovery  of  plants 
or  trees  useful  for 
food  or  for  medicine, 
the  cart,  the  wheel, 
the  water-mill  (over- 
shot, undershot,  and 
turbine),  the  wind- 
mill, the  distaff 
(followed  long,  long 
after  by  the  spin- 
ning -  wheel),  the 
loom,  dyestuffs,  the 
needle,  the  potter's 
wheel,  the  hydraulic 
press,  the  a  x  e  - 
handle,  the  spear, 
the  bow,  the 
shield,  the  war- 
chariot,  the  sling, 
the  cross-bow,  the 
boat,  the  paddle, 
the  oar,  the  helm, 
the  sail,  the 
mariner's  com- 
pass, the  clock, 
picture  -  writing, 
the  alphabet,  parch- 
mcnt,     paper. 


^^!^Sri^J^^S,^^^^--^^^^ 


printing,  photography,  the  shdmg  keel, 
the  sounding-lead,  the  log,  the  brick, 
mortar,  the  column,  the  arch,  the  donie, 
till  we  come  down  to  explosives,  the 
microscope,  the  cantilever,  and  the  Ront- 

gen  rays.  .       ,. 

The  history  of  the  successive  discovery, 
commixture,     and     applications     of     the 
metals,    from    copper    and    bron/.e    down 
to  manganese,  platinum,  and  arammium, 
or  of  the  successive  discovery  and  utiU^a- 
tion    of    sources    of    power— the    natural 
sources,    such    as    water    and    wind,    the 
artificially  procured,  such  as  steam,  gas, 
and  electricity— or  of  the  production  and 
manufacture    of    materials    available    tor 
clothing,   wool,   hair,   hnen,   silk,   cotton, 
would    show    how    every    step    becomes 
the    basis    for    another    step,    and    how 
inventions    in    one    department    suggest 
or     facihtate     inventions      m      another. 
Recent  discoveries  in   surgery  and  medi- 
cine,   such    as    the    use    of    antiseptics, 
tend  to  improve  health   and   to   prolong 
life;    and    in     doing    so,    they    increase 
the  chances   of   further  discoveries  being 

made.  ,  ,  , 

Who  can  tell  what  the  world  may  have 
lost  by  the  early  death  of  many  a  man 
of  genius  ?    One  peculiar  line  of  discovery 


The 

Prolonging 
of  Life 

none   has 


which  at  first  seemed  to  have  nothing  to 
do  with  practice  has  proved  to  be  of  signa 
service  ;  the  working  out  of  mathematical 
methods  of  calculatio-n  by  means  of  which 
the    mechanical    and    physical    sciences 
have  in  recent  times  made  a  progress  m 
their    practical    apphcation   undreamt    ot 
by    those    who    laid    the    foundations    of 
geometry    and    algebra    many 
centuries  ago.     It  may,  indeed, 
be  said   that    all   the  sciences 
need    one    another,   and   that 
iiuiie   lias    been  without  its    utihties  for 
practice,  since  even  that  which  deals  with 
the  heavenly  bodies  has  been  used  for  the 
computation   of   time,   was   used   by   the 
agriculturist  before  he  had  any  calendars 
to  guide  him,  and  has  been  of  supreme 
value  to  the  navigator.     It  has  also  been 
suggested  that  an  observation  of  sun  spots 
may  enable  the  advent  of  specially  hot 
seasons,   involving   droughts,    to   be   pie- 

dicted.  ,    ,         , 

Another  kind  of  knowledge  also  grows 
by  the  joint  efforts  of  many  peoples, 
that  which  records  the  condition  of  men 
in  the  past  and  the  present,  including 
history,  economics,  statistics,  and  the 
other  so-called  social  sciences.  This  kind 
also  is  useful  for  practice,  and  has  led  to 

43 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


improvements  by  which  nearly  all  nations 
have  profited,  such  as  an  undebased 
currency,  banking  and  insurance,  better 
systems  of  taxation,  corporations,  and  joint 
stock  compmnies.  With  this  we  may 
couple  the  invention  of  improved  political 
institutions. 

The  accumulation  of  knowledge,  espe- 
ciaUy  of  scientific  knowledge  applied  to 
the  exploitation  of  the  resources  of 
Nature,  means  the  accumulation  of  wealth 
— that  is  to  say,  of  all  the  things  which 
men  need  or  use.  The  total  wealth  of 
the  world  must  have  at  least  quadrupled 
or  quintupled  within  the  last  hundred 
years.  Nearly  all  of  it  is  in  the  hands  or 
under  the  control  of  the  civilised  nations 
of  European  stock,  among  whom  the 
United  States  stands  foremost,  both  in 
rate  of  economic  growth  and  in  the 
absolute  quantity  of  values  possessed. 

Two  further  observations  belong  to  this 
part  of  the  subject.  One  is  that  this 
stock  of  useful  knowledge,  the  accumula- 
tion of  which  is  the  central  fact  of  the 
material  progress  as  well  as  of  the  in- 
tellectual history  of  mankind,  now  belongs 
to  (practically)  all  races  and 
M.^r.^  ^*  states  alike.  Some,  as  we 
shall  note  presently,  are  more 
able  to  use  it  than  others,  but 
all  have  access  to  it.  This  is  a  new  fact. 
It  is  true  that  most  races  have  contributed 
something  to  the  common  stock ;  and 
that  even  among  the  civilised  peoples, 
no  one  or  two  or  three  (except  possibly 
the  Greeks  as  respects  ancient  times) 
can  claim  to  have  contributed  much  more 
than  the  others.  But  in  earlier  ages 
there  were  peoples  or  groups  of  peoples 
who  were  for  a  time  the  sole  possessors 
of  inventions  which  gave  them  great 
advantages,  especially  for  war.  Superior 
weapons  as  well  as  superior  drill  enabled 
Alexander  the  Great,  and  afterward  the 
Romans,  to  conquer  most  of  the  civilised 
world.  Horses  and  firearms,  with  courage 
and  discipline,  enabled  two  Spanish  adven- 
turers to  seize  two  ancient  American 
empires  with  very  scanty  forces,  as  they 
enabled  a  handful  of  Dutch  Boers  to  over- 
come the  hosts  of  Mosilikat/x-  and  Dingaan. 
So  there  were  formerly  industrial  arts 
known  to  or  practised  by  a  few  peoples 
only.  But  now  all  inventions,  even  those 
relating  to  war,  are  available  even  to 
the  more  backward  races,  if  they  can 
learn  how  to  use  them  or  can  hire  white 
men  to  do  so  for  them.     The  facilities  of 

44 


Means 
Wealth 


communication  are  so  great,  the  mean? 
of  publicity  so  abundant,  that  every- 
thing becomes  speedily  known  every- 
where. 

The  other  observation  is  that  there  is 

now  no  risk  that  any  valuable  piece  of 

knowledge    will    be    lost.     Every    public 

event   that   happens,    as   well    as    every 

fact  of  scientific  consequence, 

is  put  on  record,  and  that  not 

arc  now  ^       ■       ,        ,  j- 

,,  .         ,      on  a  smgle  stone  or  in   a   few 

Universal  9   .       i      ,    •      i       i  r 

manuscripts,  but  in  books,  of 

which   so   many   copies   exist    that   even 

the    perishable    nature    of    the    material 

will  not  involve  the  loss  of  the  contents, 

since,    if    these    contents    are    valuable, 

they   will   be    transferred    to   and   issued 

in    other    books,    and    so    ad    infinitum. 

Thus    every    process    of    manufacture    is 

known  to  so  many  persons  that  while  it 

continues  to  be  serviceable  it  is  sure  to  be 

familiar  and  transmitted  from  generation 

to  generation  by  practice  as  well  as  by 

description.     We   must   imagine   a  world 

totally  different  from  the  world  we  know 

in  order  to  imagine  the  possibility  of  any 

diminution,  indeed  of  any  discontinuance 

of  the  increase,  of  this  stock  of  knowledge 

which  the  world  has  been  acquiring,  and 

which  is  not  only  knowledge  but  potential 

wealth. 

When  one  passes  from  knowledge 
considered  as  a  body  of  facts  ascertained 
and  available  for  use  to  the  thing  we  call 
intellectual  aptitude  or  culture — namely, 
the  power  of  turning  knowledge  to  account 
and  of  producing  results  in  spheres  other 
than  material — and  when  we  inquire 
whether  mankind  has  made  a  parallel 
advance  in  this  direction,  it  becomes 
necessary  to  distinguish  three  different 
kinds   of  intellectual   capacity. 

The  first  may  be  called  the  power  of 
using  scientific  methods  for  investigating 
phenomena,  whether  jihysical  or  social. 

The  second  is  the  jiower  of  speculation, 
applied  to  matters  which  have  not  hitherto 
been  found  capable  of  ex- 
No  Decrease  a^in^^tion  by  the  methods  of 


of  Knowledge 
is  now  Likely 


science,  whether  observa- 
tional, experimental,  or  mathe- 
matical. The  third  is  the  power  of 
intellectual  creation,  whether  literary  or 
artistic. 

The  methods  of  scientific  inquiry  may 
almost  be  classed  with  the  ascertained 
facts  of  science  or  with  inventions,  as 
being  parts  of  the  stock  of  accumulated 
knowledge    built    up    by    the    labour    of 


INTRODUCTION    BY   RT.    KON.    VISCOUNT    BRYCE 


.many  generations.  They  are  known  to 
ev^erybody  who  cares  to  study  them,  and 
can  be  learnt  and  appHed  by  everybody 
who  will  give  due  diligence.  Just  as 
every  man  can  be  taught  to  fire  a  gun, 
or  steer  a  ship,  or  write  a  letter,  though 
guns,  helms,  and  letters  are  the  result 
of  discoveries  made  by  exceptionally 
gifted  men,  so  every  graduate  in  science 
of  a  university  can  use  the  methods  of 
induction,  can  observe  and  experiment 
with  a  correctness  which  a  few  centuries 
ago  even  the  most  vigorous  minds  could 
scarcely  have  reached. 

Because  the  methods  have  been  so  fully 
explained  and  illustrated  as  to  have  grown 
familiar,  a  vast  host  of  investigators, 
very  few  of  whom  possess  scientific 
genius,  are  at  work  to-day  extending  our 
scientific  knowledge.  So  the  methods  of 
historical  criticism — so  the  methods  of 
using  statistics — are  to-day  profitably 
applied  by  many  men  with  no  such 
original  gift  as  would  have  made  them 
competent  critics  or  statisticians  had  not 
the  paths  been  cut  by  a  few  great  men 
and  trodden  since  by  hundreds  of  feet. 
_  .  ,  All    that   is   needed  is  imita- 

rigina  ^-^^ — intelligent    and    careful 

Thinkers  arc   ■      •.     ,•  ^t  xi.    i  ^i 

..„  „  imitation.    Nevertheless,  there 

still  Rare  ,i  •         i  .         , 

remains  this  sharp  contrast 
between  knowledge  of  the  facts  of 
applied  science  and  knowledge  of  the 
methods,  that  whereas  there  is  no  radical 
difference  between  the  ability  of  one  man 
and  that  of  another  to  use  a  mechanical 
invention,  such  as  a  steam  plough  or  an 
electric  motor-car,  there  is  all  the  difference 
in  the  world  between  the  power  of  one 
intellect  and  another  to  use  a  method  for 
the  purposes  of  fresh  discovery.  Know- 
ledge fossilised  in  a  concrete  invention 
or  even  in  a  mathematical  formula  is  a 
sort  of  tool  ready  to  every  hand.  But 
a  method,  though  serviceable  to  every- 
body, becomes  eminently  fruitful  only 
when  wielded  by  the  same  kind  of  original 
genius  as  that  which  made  discoveries  by 
the  less  perfect  methods  of  older  days. 
This  is  apparent  even  in  inquiries 
which  seem  to  reside  chiefly  in  collection 
and  computation.  Everybody  tries  now- 
adays to  use  statistics.  Many  people  do 
use  them  profitably.  But  the  people  who 
by  means  of  statistics  can  throw  really 
fresh  and  brilliant  light  on  a  problem  are 
as  few  as  ever  they  were. 

When  we  turn  to  the  exercise  of  specu- 
lative thought  on  subjects  not  amenable  to 


strictly  scientific — that  is  to  say,  to  exact — 

methods,    the   gain   which   has   come    to 

mankind  by  the  labour  of  past  ages  is  of 

a   different   order.      Metaphysics,    ethics, 

and  theology,  to  take  the  most  obvious 

examples,  are  all  of  them  the  richer  for 

the  thoughts  of  ]:)hilosophers  in  the  past. 

A  number  of  distinctions  have  been  drawn, 

.  .  ,  and  a  number  of  classifications 

Advantage  of  j  u         £         x-      ■ 

..    ,  made,  a  number  of  contusions, 

Modern  over       r^^  i     i   i  i  i  j 

/M  J  Tt  •  1  often  verbal,  have  been  cleared 
Old  Thinkers  ,  r     c   ^^      ■ 

up,    a    number    of    fallacies 

detected,  a  number  of  technical  terms 
invented,  whereby  the  modern  speculator 
enjoys  a  great  advantage  over  his  prede- 
cessor. His  mind  has  been  clarified,  and 
many  new  aspects  of  the  old  problems 
have  been  presented,  so  that  he  is  better 
able  to  see  all  round  the  old  problems. 

None  of  the  great  thinkers,  from  Pytha- 
goras down  to  Hegel,  has  left  metaphysics 
where  he  found  it.  Yet  none  can  be  said 
to  have  built  on  the  foundations  of  his 
predecessors  in  the  same  way  as  the 
mathematicians  and  physicists  and  chemists 
have  added  to  the  edifice  they  found. 
What  the  philosophers  have  done  is  to 
accumulate  materials  for  the  study  of 
man's  faculties  and  modes  of  thinking,  and 
of  his  ideas  regarding  his  relations  to 
the  universe,  while  also  indicating  various 
methods  by  which  the  study  may  be  pur- 
sued. Each  great  product  of  speculative 
thought  is  itself  a  part  of  these  materials, 
and  for  that  reason  never  becomes  obso- 
lete, as  the  treatises  of  the  old  physicists 
and  chemists  have  mostly  become.  Aris- 
totle, for  instance,  has  left  us  books  on 
natural  history,  on  metaphysics  and 
ethics,  and  on  politics.  Those  on  natural 
history  are  mere  curiosities,  and  no  modern 
biologist  or  zoologist  needs  them.  Those 
on  metaphysics  and  ethics  still  deserve 
the  attention  of  the  student  of  philosophy, 
though  he  may  in  a  certain  sense  be  said 
to  have  got  beyond  them.  The  treatise 
on  politics  still  keeps  its  place  beside 
...  Montesquieu,  Burke,  and  Toc- 
Th^    ht"^^    queville.     Or,  to  take  a  thinker 


a  Dead  Age 


who    seems    further    removed 


from  us  even  than  Aristotle, 
though  fifteen  hundred  years  later  m  date, 
St.  Thomas  of  Aquinum  discusses  ques- 
tions from  most  of  which  the  modern 
world  has  moved  away,  and  discusses 
them  by  methods  which  few  would  now 
use,  starting  from  premises  which  few 
would  now  accept.  But  he  marks  a 
remarkable  stage  in  the  history  of  human 

45 


HIL    c 


OF    THE    WORLD 


thought,  and  as  a  part  of  that  history,  and 
as  an  example  of  extraordinary  dialectical 
ingenuity  and  subtlety,  he  remains  an 
object  of  interest  to  those  least  in  agree- 
ment with  his  conclusions. 

Every     great     thinker     affects     other 

thinkers,  and  propagates  the  impulse  he 

has  received,  though  perhaps  in  a  quite 

different     direction.       The 

Th^T     '^^         teaching    of    Socrates  was 

A  rr "  /'^/N.i.         the  starting  point  for  nearly 

Affects  Others       ,,  ^,  i_  .       i        i       r 

all  the  subsequent  schools  of 

Greek  philosophy.   Hume  became  the  point 

of  departure  for  Kant,  who  desired  to  lay  a 

deeper  foundation  for  philosophy  than  that 

which  Hume  seemed  to  have  overturned. 

All  these  great  ones  have  not  only  enriched 

us,   but   are  still  capable  of   stimulating 

us.     But    they   have   not    improved    our 

capacity     for     original      thinking.      The 

accumulation  of  scientific  knowledge  has, 

as    already   observed,    put    all    mankind 

in   a  better  position   for  solving   further 

physical    problems    and    establishing    a 

more    complete   dominion    over    Nature. 

The  accumulation  of  philosophic  thought 

has  had  no  similar  effect.     In  the  former 

case  each  man  stands,  so   to  speak,   on 

the  shoulders  of  his  predecessors.     In  the 

latter  he  stands  on  his  own  feet.  The  value 

of  future  contributions  to  philosophy  will 

depend  on  the  original  power  of  the  minds 

that  make  them,  and  only  to  a  small  extent 

(except  by  way  of  stimulus)  on  what  such 

minds  may  have  drawn  from  those  into 

whose  labours  they  have  entered. 

When   we    come    to    the    products    of 

literary  and  artistic  capacity,  we  find  an 

even  vaster   accumulation  of  intellectual 

treasure  available    for  enjoyment,  but    a 

still  more  marked  absence  of  connection 

between  the  amount  of  treasures  possessed 

and  the  power  of  adding  fresh  treasures 

to  them.  Since  writing  came  into  use,  and, 

indeed,  even  in  the  days  when  memory 

alone  preserved  lays  and  tales,  every  age 

anfl  many  races  have  contributed  to  the 

_      _,.  stock.  There  have  been  ebbs 

r  I  . 'ii^  .     1  ''ind  flows  both  in  quantity 

of  Intellectual  ,  ,-,  i-i  '      .       ■ 

r-  u  and  quality.     Ihc  centuries 

Culture  1  "^        /-  1 

between  a.d.  ooo  and  a.d. 
iioo  have  left  us  very  little  of  high  merit 
in  literature,  though  something  in  archi- 
tecture ;  and  the  l^cst  of  that  little  in 
literature  did  not  come  from  the  seats  of 
ivoman  civilisation  in  Italy,  France, 
Spain,  and  the  East  Roman  Empire. 

Some   periods    have   seen  an  eclipse  of 
poetry,    others    an    eclipse    of    art    or    a 

46 


sterility  in  music.  Literature  and  the  arts 
have  not  always  flourished  together,  and 
musical  genius  in  particular  seems  to  have 
little  to  do  with  the  contemporaneous 
development  of  other  forms  of  intellectual 
power.  The  quantity  of  production  bears 
no  relation  to  the  quality,  not  even  an 
inverse  relation  ;  for  the  pessimistic 
notion  that  the  larger  the  output  the 
smaller  is  the  part  which  possesses  brilliant 
excellence,  has  not  been  proved.  Still  less 
does  the  amount  of  good  work  produced 
in  any  given  area  depend  upon  the  number 
of  persons  living  in  that  area.  Florence, 
between  a.d.  1250  and  a.d.  1500  gave 
birth  to  more  men  of  first-rate  poetical 
and  artistic  genius  than  London  has  pro- 
duced since  1250  ;    yet  Florence  had  in 


THE    MIND    OF   THE    ANCIENT   WORLD 
Aristotle  (B.C.  384-322)  whose  influence  is  greater  in 
modern  thought  than  that  of  St.  Thomas  of  Aquinuin^ 
who   represents    mediaeval   thought,  1500  years   later. 

those  two  and  a  half  centuries  a  population 
of  probably  only  from  forty  to  sixty 
thousand.  And  Florence  her.self  has  since 
A.D.  1500  given  birth  to  .scarcely  any 
distinguished  poets  or  artists,  though  her 
j:)opulati()n  has  been  larger  than  it  was  in 
the  fifteenth  century. 

The  increa.se  in  the  world's  stock  of 
intellectual  wealth  is  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  facts  in  history,  for  it  rej)resents 
a  constant  increa.se  in  the  means  of  en- 
joyment. Such  lo.s.ses  as  there  have 
been  nearly  all  occurred  during  the 
Dark  Ages  ;    l)ut  there  is  now  little  risk 


INTKODUCTION    BY   RT.   HON.   VISCOUNT   BRYCE 


that  anything  of  high  htcrary  or  musical 
value  will  perish,  though^  of  course,  works 
of  art,  and  especially  buildings  and  carv- 
ings, suffer  or  vanish. 

The  increase  does  not,  however,  tend 
to  any  strengthening  of  the  creative 
faculty.  There  is  a  greater  abundance  of 
rtiodels  of  excellence,  models  of  which  form 
the  taste,  afford  a  stimulus  to  sensitive 
minds,  and  establish  a  sort  of  technique 
with  well-known  rules.  The  principles  of 
criticism  are  more  fully  investigated. 
The  power  of  analysis  grows,  and  the 
appreciation  both  of  literature  and  of  art 
is  more  widely  diffused.  Their  influence 
on  the  whole  community  becomes  greater, 
but  the  creative  imagination  which  is 
needed  for  the  production  of  original  work 


THE    MIND    OF    THE    MEDIEVAL    WORLD 
St.  Thomas  of  Aquinnm,  1500  years  later  than  Aristotle, 
represents  mediaeval  thought.     But  the  Mediaeval  World 
is  more  remote  than  the  Classical  in  thought  and  science. 

becomes  no  more  abundant  and  no  more 
powerful.  It  may,  indeed,  be  urged,  though 
our  data  are  probably  insufficient  for  a 
final  judgment,  that  the  finer  qualities  of 
poetry  and  of  pictorial  and  plastic  art  tend 
rather  to  decline  under  the  more  analytic 
habit  of  mind  which  belongs  to  the  modern 
world.  Simplicity,  freshness,  spontaneity 
come  less  naturally  to  those  who  have  fallen 
under  the  pervasive  influence  of  this  habit. 
There  remains  one  other  way  in  which 
the  incessant  play  of  thought  may  be 
said  to  have  increased  or  improved  the 
resources  of  mankind.    Certain  principles 


or  ideas  belonging  to  the  moral  and  social 
sphere — to  the  moral  sphere  by  their 
origin,  to  the  social  sphere  by  their  results 
— make  their  way  to  a  more  or  less  general 
acceptance,  and  exert  a  potent  influence 
upon  human  life  and  action.  They  are 
absent  in  the  earliest  communities  of 
which  we  know,  or  are  present  only  in 

Effect  of  ^^^^'  ^^^^  emerge,  some- 
^.  . ,  times  in  the  form  of  customs 
Thought  on  J       11       1       1. 

w  •  •  J  gradually  built  up  m  one  or 
Mankind         °  -^    ,  ^  .■  -      .1 

more  peoples,  sometimes  in  the 

utterances  of  one  gifted  mind.  Sometimes 
they  spread  impalpably  ;  sometimes  they 
become  matter  for  controversy,  and  are 
made  the  battle-cries  of  parties.  Some- 
times they  end  by  being  universally  re- 
ceived, though  not  necessarily  put  into 
practice.  Sometimes,  on  the  other  hand, 
they  continue  to  be  rejected  in  one  country, 
or  by  one  set  of  persons  in  a  country,  as 
vehemently  as  they  are  asserted  by  another. 
As  instances  of  these  principles  or  ideas  or 
doctrines,  whatever  one  is  to  call  them, 
the  following  may  be  taken  :  The  con- 
demnation of  piracy,  of  slavery,  and  of 
treaty-breaking,  of  outrages  on  the  bodies 
of  dead  enemies,  of  cruelty  to  the  lower 
animals,  of  the  slaughter  of  prisoners  in 
cold  blood,  of  polygamy,  of  torture  to 
witnesses  or  criminals  ;  the  recognition 
of  the  duty  of  citizens  to  obey  the  laws, 
and  of  the  moral  responsibility  of  rulers 
for  the  exercise  of  their  power,  of  the  right 
of  each  man  to  hold  his  own  religious 
opinion  and  to  worship  accordingly,  of 
the  civil  (though  not  necessarily  of  the 
pohtical)  equality  of  all  citizens  ;  the  dis- 
approval of  intoxication,  the  value  set 
upon  female  chastity,  the  acceptance  of 
the  social  and  civil  (to  which  some  would 
add  the  political)  equality  of  women. 

All  these  dogmas  or  ideas  or  opinions — 
some  have  become  dogmas  in  all  civilised 
peoples,  others  are  rather  to  be  described  as 
opinions  whose  truth  or  worth  is  denied 
or  only  partially  admitted — are  the  slow 
product  of  many  generations.  Most  of 
-.  them  are  due  to  what  we  may 

r^^^,^..  ^  .  call  the  intelligence  and  senti- 
Contnbuted  ,         .  1  ■    j        ,1 

p  ment    of    mankind    at   large, 

rather  than  to  their  advocacy 

by  any  prominent  individual  thinkers.  The 

teachings  of  such  thinkers  have,  of  course, 

done  much  to  advance  them.    Everybody 

would   name   Socrates   and   Confucius   as 

among  the  men  who  have  contributed  to 

their    progress  ;    some    would    add    such 

names    as     those    of    Mohammed    and 

47 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


St.  Francis  of  Assisi.  Christianity  has,  of 
course,  made  the  largest  contributions. 
How  much  is  due  to  moral  feeling,  how 
much  to  a  sense  of  common  utility,  cannot 
be  exactly  estimated.  Economic  reason- 
ings and  practical  experience  would  have 
probably  in  the  long  run  destroyed 
_  slavery,  but  it  was  sentiment 

rx    ^  ^^  ^       that  did  in  fact  destroy  it  in 

Destroyed  ,  .    .,-      j    Ci    i.  u 


by  Sentiment 


the  civilised  States  where  it 


had  longest  survived. 

How  much  these  doctrines,  even  in  the 
partial  and  imperfect  application  which 
most  of  them  have  secured,  have  done 
for  humanity  may  be  perceived  by  any- 
one who  will  imagine  what  the  world 
would  be  if  they  were  unknown.  They 
form  one  of  the  most  substantial  additions 
made  to  what  may  be  called  the  intel- 
lectual and  moral  capital  with  which  man 
has  to  work  this  planet  and  improve  his 
own  life  upon  it.  And  the  most  interesting 
and  significant  crises  in  history  are  those 
which  have  turned  upon  the  recognition 
or  application  of  principles  of  this  kind. 
The  Reformation  of  the  sixteenth  century, 
the  French  Revolution,  the  War  of  Seces- 
sion in  the  United  States,  are  familiar 
modern   examples. 

Putting  all  these  forms  of  human 
achievement  together — the  extension  of 
the  scientific  knowledge  of  Nature  with 
consequent  mastery  over  her,  the  scientific 
knowledge  of  social  phenomena  in  the 
past  and  the  present,  the  records  of  philo- 
sophic speculation,  the  mass  of  literary 
and  artistic  products,  the  establishment, 
however  partial  and  imperfect,  of  regu- 
lative moral  and  political  principles — 
it  will  be  seen  that  the  accumulation  of  this 
vast  stock  of  intellectual  wealth  has  been 
an  even  more  imj)ortant  factor  than  the 
increase  of  population  in  givmg  man 
strength  and  dignity  over  against  Nature, 
and  in  opening  up  to  him  an  endless  variety 
of  modes  of  enjoying  life — that  is  to  say,  of 
making  it  yield  to  him  the  most  which  its 
shortness  and  his  own  jihysical  infirmities 
.      .  jiermit.    The  process  by  which 

\j-  I..-     .1.      this    accumulation    has   been 

Mighlierthan  •     i       i  •       xu  ^      ^ 

~      ,  ,.  carried   along   is   the   central 

/Population  ,  ,      f  ,  .  «,, 

thread  of  history.  The  main 
aim  of  a  history  of  the  world  must  be 
to  show  what  and  how  each  race  or 
people  has  contributed  to  the  general 
stock.  To  this  aim  political  history, 
ecclesiastical  history,  economic  history, 
the  history  of  philosophy,  and  the  history 
of  science,  are  each  of  them  subordinate, 

48 


though  it  is  only  through  them  that 
the  process  can  be  explained. 

In  these  last  few  pages  intellectual 
progress  has  been  considered  apart  from 
the  area  in  which  it  has  gone  on,  and  apart 
from  the  conditions  imposed  on  it  by  the 
natural  features  of  that  area.  A  few  words 
are,  however,  needed  regarding  its  relation 
to  the  surface  of  the  earth.  The  move- 
ment of  civilisation  must  be  considered 
from  the  side  of  space  as  well  as  from  that 
of  time. 

Space  is  a  material  element  in  the 
inquiry  because  it  has  divided  the  families 
of  mankind  from  one  another.  Some  fami- 
lies, such  as  the  Chinese  and  the  Peru- 
vians, have  developed  independently,  some, 
such  as  the  South  and  West  European 
peoples,  in  connection  with,  or  perhaps  in 
dependence  on,  the  development  of  other 
races  or  peoples.  Hence  that  which  each 
achieved  was  in  some  cases  achieved  for 
itself  only,  in  other  cases  for  its  neighbours 
as  well.  The  contributions  made  by  dif- 
ferent races  have — at  any  rate  during  the 
last  four  thousand  years,  and  probably  in 
earlier  days  also — been  very  unequal ;  yet 
none  can   have  failed  to  con- 

n  rac  ion  ^j-j|~,y|-g   something   if  only  by 

th  W  Id  ^^^y  °^  influencing  the  others. 
Inequality  in  progress  would 
seem  to  have  become  more  marked  in  the 
later  than  in  the  earlier  periods.  Indeed, 
some  races,  such  as  those  of  Australia, 
appear  during  many  centuries,  possibly 
owing  to  their  isolation,  to  have  made 
no  i)rogress  at  all.  They  may  even  have 
receded. 

When  we  regard  the  evolution  and 
develo{)ment  of  man  from  the  side  of  his 
relations  to  space,  three  facts  stand  out — 
the  contraction  of  the  world,  the  overflow 
of  the  more  advanced  races,  and  the  conse- 
quent diffusion  all  over  the  world  of  what 
is  called  civilisation. 

By  the  contraction  of  the  world,  I  mean 
the  greater  swiftness,  ease,  and  safety  with 
which  men  can  pass  from  one  part  taf  it  to 
another,  or  communicate  with  one  another 
across  great  intervening  spaces.  This  has 
the  effect  of  making  the  world  smaller  for 
most  practical  purposes,  while  the  absolute 
distance  in  latitude  and  longitude  remains 
the  same.  The  progress  of  discovery  is 
worth  tracing,  for  it  shows  how  much 
larger  the  small  earth,  which  was  known 
to  the  early  nations,  must  have  seemed  to 
them  than  the  whole  earth,  which  we  know, 
seems  to  us. 


THE     ARTISTIC     GENIUS     OF     TWO     CITIES 

A  COMPARISON  OF  THE  NATIVE  POETS  &  ARTISTS  OF  FLORENCE  &  LONDON 

"The  quantity  ol  production,"  says  Mr.  Bryce,  "bears  no  relation  to  the  quality. 
Still  less  does  the  amount  ol  good  work  produced  in  any  given  area  depend 
upon  the  number  of  persons  living  in  that  area.  Florence  between  A.D.  1230  and 
A.D.  1300  gave  birth  to  more  men  of  first-rate  poetical  and  artistic  genius  than 
London  has  produced  since  1230;  yet  Florence  had  in  those  two  and  a  half 
centuries  a  population  of  probably  only  from  forty  to  sixty  thousand.  And  Florence 
herself  has  since  A.D.  1500  given  birth  to  scarcely  any  distinguished  poets  or 
artists,  though  her  population  has  been  larger  than  it  was  in  the  lifteenth  century." 

THE     GENIUS      OF     THE      GOLDEN     AGE     OF     FLORENCE,     1250     TO     1300. 
FAR    EXCEEDED    THAT    OF    LONDON    FROM    1250    TO    THE    PRESENT    DAY 


Poets   and    Artists    Born    in 

Alberti,  Leon  Battista,  1404-1472,  architect,  painter 

Albertinelli,  Mariotto,  1474-1515,  painter  I 

Andrea  del  Sarto,  1487-1531,  painter 

Angelico  da  Fiesole,  Fra  Giovanni,  1387-1455,  painter 

Botticelli,  Alessandro,  1447-1510,  painter 

Cavalcanti,  Gnido,  1255-1^00,  poet,  philosopher  j 

Cimabue,  Giovanni,  12401302,  painter 

Credi,  Lorenzo  di,  1439-1537,  painter 

Dante,  Alighieri,  1265  1321,  poet 

Jlonatello,  1386-1466,  sculptor  and  painter 

Ghiberti,  Lorenzo,  1378-1455,  sculptor 

Ghirlandajo,  Domenico,  1449-1494,  painter 

Gozzoli,  Benozzo,  1420-1498,  painter 

Leonardo  da  Vinci,  1452-1519,  painter,  sculptor 

Lippi,  Fra  Filippo,  1412-1469,  painter 

Lippi,  Filippino,  1459-1504,  painter 

Lorenzo,  Don,  1370-1425,  painter 


Florence    from    1250-1500 

Medici,  Lorenzo  de,  1448-1492,  poet 

Orcagnia,    Andrea    di    Clone,    1329-1368?    sculptor, 

painter 
Perugino,  Vannucci  Pietro,  1446-1524,  painter 
Pesellino,  Francesco  di,  1422-1457,  painter 
Pesello,  Giuliano,  1367-1446,  painter,  sculptor 
Pollajuolo,  Antonio,  1429-1498,  sculptor,  painter 
Pollajuolo,  Piero,  1443-1496,  sculptor,  painter 
Robbia,  Andrea  della,  1437-1528,  sculptor 
Robbia,  Luca  della,  1399-1482,  sculptor 
Rossi,    Giovanni    Battista    de,    1494-1541,    sculptor, 

painter 
Ruccellai,  Giovanni,  1475-1525,  poet 
Spinello,  Aretino,  1334-1410,  painter 
Ucello,  Paolo,  1397-1475,  painter 
Verocchio,  Andrea,  1435-1488,  sculptor,  painter 


THE   LAST   FOUR   HUNDRED   YEARS   OF    FLORENTINE    CULTURE    HAVE    BEEN 

LESS    PRODUCTIVE    THAN    THE    PRECEDING    TWO    AND    A    HALF   CENTURIES 

Poets   and   Artists    Born   in   Florence   since    1500 


Allori,  Christofano,  1577-1621,  painter 
Bronzino,  Angelo,  1502-1572,  painter 
Cellini,  Benvenuto,  1500-1571,  sculptor 
Cigoli,  Luigi  Cardi  da,  1559-1613,  painter 
Cortona,  Pietro  da,  1596-1669,  architect,  painter 
Dolci,  Carlo,  1616-1686,  painter 
Doni,   Antonio    Francesco,    1513-1574,    author 
t'urini,  Francesco,  1604-1646,  painter 


Ligozzi,  Jacobino,  1543-1627,  painter 

Poccetti,  Bernardino,  1542-1612,  painter 

Salviati,  Francesco,  1510-1563,  painter 

San  Giovanni,  Giovanni  da,  1599-1636,  painter 

Santi  di  Tito,  1538-1603,  painter 

Tacco,  Pietro,  1580-1640,  sculptor 

Venusti,  Marcello,  1515-1579,  painter 


The   Only   Great   Poet    Born   in   London   from    1250-1500 

Chaucer,  Geoffrey, 

Poets  and   Artists   Born   in 


Blake,  William,  1757-1827,  poet  and  painter 

Browning,  Robert,  1812-1889,  po^t 

Byron,  Geo.  Gordon  Noel,  Lord,  1788-1824,  poet 

Defoe,  Daniel,  1659-1731,  author 

Ford,  Edward  Onslow,  1852-1901,  sculptor 

Gilbert,  Alfred,  R.A.,  1854 .  sculptor 

Gray,  Thomas,  1716-1771,  poet 

Hogarth,  William,  1697-1764,  painter 

Hood,  Thomas,  1799-1845,  poet 

Hunt,  William  Holman,    1827-1910,  painter 

Jonson,  Ben,  1573-1637,  poet  and  dramatist 

Keats,  John,  1795-1821,  poet 

Lamb,  Charles,  1775-1834,  essayist 


132B-1400 

London   since    ISOO 

Linnetl,  John,  1792-18S2,  painter 

Lucas,  John  Seymour,  1849-  • — ,  painter 

Milton,  John,  1608-1674,  poet 

Morland,  George,  1763-1804,  painter 

Pope,  Alexander,  168S-1744,  poet 

Richmond,  Sir  William  Blake,  1843-  — ,  painter 

Rossetti,  Dante  Gabriel,  1828-1882,  poet,  painter 

Ruskin,  John,  1819-1900,  author  and  art  critic 

Spenser,  Edmund,  1552-1599,  poet 

Stothard,  Thomas,  1755-1834,  painter,  illustrator 

Swinburne,  Algernon,  1837-1909,  poet 

Walker,  Frederick,  1840-1875,  painter 

Watts,  George  F.,  1817-1904,  painter,  sculptor 


.f^r^ 


aa 


49 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


The  most  ancient  recoi  ve  possess 
from  Assyria,  Egypt,  Palesui.  id  from 
the  Homeric  poems,  show  how  .  ^y  hmited 
was  the  range  of  geographical  knowledge 
possessed   by  that  small   ci .     sed  world 

T,.     c     „        from  which  our  o^yn  civilisa- 
The  Small  .         i        j  i  i  • 

World  of  "*      "^  descende  'eakmg 

the  Ancients    roughly, that  knowledge  seems 
m  the  tenth  century  B.C.  to 
have  extended  about  one  thousand  miles 
in  each  direction  from  the  Isthmus  of  Suez. 
However,    the    best    point    of   departure 
for  the  peoples  of   antiquity  is   the   era 
of  Herodotus,   who   travelled   and  wrote 
B.C.    460-440.      The 
limits   of    the  world 
as  he  knew  it  were 
Cadiz  and  the  Straits 
of   Gibraltar   on  the 
west,  the  Danube  and 
the   Caspian   on   the 
north,  the  deserts  of 
Eastern  Persia  on  the 
east,  and  the  Sahara 
on   the    south,    with 
vague  tales  regarding 
peoples     who     lived 
beyond,  such  as  In- 
dians     far      beyond 
Persia,  and  pygmies 
beyond  the    Sahara. 
He  reports,  however, 
not  without    hesita- 
tion,   a    circumnavi- 
gation of  Africa  by 
Phoenicians     in     the 
service    of    Pharaoh 
Necho. 

Discovery  ad- 
vanced  very  slowly 
for  many  centuries, 
though  the  march 
of  Alexander  opened    "^"^  first  known  map  of  the  world 

iin   nirf   r,f    iht^  Fact  This  Babylonian  map  is  probably  of  the  eighth  century  B.C. 

"I     F"l  •■  "Jl     LUe  iZ^abi;,  The  two  circles  are  supposed  to  represent  the  ocean,  while 

while  the  Roman  con-  *''^  River  Euphrates  and  Babylon  are  shown  inside  them. 

,         ,  1  ^     J 1  The  upper  part  of  the  tablet  is  a  cuneiform  inscription. 

quests    brought    the  ^ 

Far  North-West,  including  Britain,  within 

Ihe  range  of  civihsation  ;    and  occasional 

voyages,  such  as  that  of  Hanno  along  the 

coast  of  West  Africa,  that  of  Nearchus 

through    the   Arabian    Sea,    and   that   of 

Pythias  to  the  Baltic,  added  something  to 

knowledge.    Procopius  in  a.d.  540  can  tell 

us  little  more  regarding  the  regions  beyond 

Roman  influence  than   Strabo  does  five 

and  a  half  centuries  earlier.    The  journeys 

of  Marco  Polo  and  Rubruquis  throw  only 

a  passing  light  on  the  Far  East.    It  is  with 

the   Spanish    occupation   of    the    Canary 

50 


Isles,    beginning   in    1602,    and   with   the 
Portuguese  voyages  of  the  fifteenth  century, 
that  the  era  of  modern  discovery  opens. 
The  re-discovery  of  America  in  1492,  for  it 
had  been  already  visited  by  the  Northmen 
of  Greenland  and  Iceland  in  the  eleventh 
century,  and  the  opening  of  the  Cape  route 
to  India  in  1497-1498,  were  hardly  equal 
to  the  exploit  of  Magellan,  whose  circum- 
navigation of  the  globe  in  1519-1520  marks 
the  close  of  this  striking  period.     There- 
after   discovery    proceeds    more   slowly. 
Some  of  the  i.sles  of  the  central  and  south- 
ern Pacific  were  not  visited  till  the  middle 
of      the     eighteenth 
century,      and     the 
north-west  coast    of 
America   as  well  as 
the  north-east  Coast 
of    Asia,     remained 
little  known   till  an 
even       later      date. 
Those     explorations 
of     the    interior    of 
North    America,    of 
the  interior  of  Africa, 
of     the    interior    of 
Australia,      and     of 
East    Central    Asia, 
which     have      com- 
pleted    our     know- 
ledge  of   the  earth, 
belong  to  the  nine- 
teenth century.    The 
first  crossing  of  the 
North  American  Con- 
tinent north  of  lati- 
tude   40°    was    not 
effected  till  a.d.  1806. 
The  desire  for  new 
territory,  for  the  pro- 
pagation of  religion, 
and,   above    all,   for 
the  precious  metals, 
were    the    chief 
motives     which 
prompted  the  voyages  of  the  fifteenth  and 
sixteenth      centuries.        These      motives 
have  remained  operative  ;    and  to   them 
has    been   added    in   more    recent    times 
the    spirit    of    pure    adventure    and    the 
interest    in     science,    together 
with,   in    increasing    mesisure, 
the  effort  to  secure  trade.     But 
the  extension  of  trade  followed 
slowly  in  the  wake  of  discovery.  China  and 
Japan  remained  almost  closed.  The  policy 
of  Spain  sought  to  restrict  her  American 
waters  to  her  own  ships,  and  the  commerce 


The  Thirst 
for  New 
Territories 


The  Hereford  Map  :  about  1307 

Note  Paradise  at   tlie  top,  and  Jerusalem  in  the  centre 


The  Fra  Mauro  Map  :   about  1457 

Babylon   is   shown   in   the   centre   of  the   map 


The  World  as  Known  on  the  Eve  of  the  Discovery  of  America    (Drawn  by  Martin  Behaim  in  1492) 


The  World  as  known  in  150  A.  D.    From  a  map  by  Ptolemy,  who  appears  to  have  had  knowledgre  o.  the  sources  of  the  Nile 


THE    FIRST    MAPS:    SOME    EARLY    GEOGRAPHERS'    IDEAS    OF    THE    WORLD 


51 


INTRODUCTION    BY   RT,    HON.    VISCOUNT    BRYCE 


they  carried  was  scanty.  Communica- 
tion remained  slow  and  dangerous  across 
the  oceans  till  the  introduction  of  steam 
vessels  (1825-1830). 

Land  transport,  though  it  had  steadily 
increased  in  Europe,  remained  costly  as 
well  as  slow  till  the  era  of  railway  con- 
struction began  in  1829.  The  application 
of  steam  as  a  motive  power  and  of  elec- 
tricity as  a  means  of  communicating 
thought  has  been  by  far  the  greatest  factor 
in  this  long  process  of  reducing  the  dimen- 
sions of  the  world,  which  dates  back  as  far 
as  the  domestication  of  beasts  of  burden, 
and  the  invention,  first  of  paddles  and  oars, 
and  then  of  sails.  The  North  American 
Continent  can  now  be  crossed  in  five 
days,  the  South  American  (from  Valparaiso 
to  Buenos  Ayres)  ii  under  two,  the 
Transandine  tunnel  having  now  been 
pierced.  The  Continent  which  stretches 
from  the  Baltic  to  the  North  Pacific  can 
now  be  traversed  in  twelve  days.  By 
means  of  the  Trans-Siberian  line  and  its 
steamship  connection  with  the  ports  of 
Japan,  it  is  now  possible  to  go  round  the 
globe  in  less  than  fifty  days.  Indeed,  the 
„       .  ^       iourney  has  recentlv  been  done 

Round  the       •        r     1         1  Vt  •        j-i-  • 

...    , ,  .        ni    forty    days.     Nor    is    this 

World  m  .J.J. 


40  Days  ! 


acceleration    of    transit    more 


remarkable  than  its  practi- 
cal immunity,  as  compared  with  earher 
times,  not  only  from  the  dangers  for  which 
Nature  is  answerable,  but  from  those  also 
which  man  formerly  interposed. 

The  increase  of  trade  which  has  followed 
in  the  track  first  of  discovery  and  latterly 
(with  immensely  larger  volume)  of  the 
improvement  of  means  of  transport,  has 
been  accompanied  not  only  by  the  seizure 
of  transoceanic  territories  by  the  greater 
civiUsed  States,  but  also  by  an  outflow  of 
population  from  those  States  into  the 
more  backward  or  more  thinly-peopled 
parts  of  the  earth.  Sometimes,  as  in  the 
case  of  North  America,  Siberia,  and  Aus- 
traUa,  the  emigrants  extinguish  or  absorb 
the  aboriginal  population. 

Sometimes,  as  in  the  case  of  India, 
Africa,  and  some  parts  of  South  America, 
they  neither  extinguish  nor  blend  with  the 
previous  inhabitants,  but  rule  them  and 
spread  what  is  called  civilisation  among 
them — this  civilisation  consisting  chiefly 
in  a  knowledge  of  the  mechanical  arts 
and  of  deathful  weapons  accompanied  by 
the  destruction,  more  or  less  gradual, 
of  their  pre-existing  beliefs  and  usages. 
Sometimes,    again,    as    in    the    case   of 


China,  and  to  some  extent  also  of  the 
Mussulman  East,  though  political  dominion 
is  not  established,  the  process  of  sub- 
stituting a  new  civilisation  for  the  old 
one  goes  on  despite  the  occasional  efforts  of 
the  backward  people  to  resist  the  process. 
The  broad  result  is  everywhere  similar. 
The  modern  European  type  of  civilisation 

„  is  being  diffused  over  the  whole 

European-  .u  i- 

.      .        -      earth,    superseding,   or   essen- 

the  World  *^^^^y  modifying,  the  older  local 
types.  Thus,  in  a  still  more 
important  sense  than  even  that  of  com- 
munications, the  world  is  contracted  and 
becomes  far  more  one  than  it  has  ever 
been  before.  The  European  who  speaks 
three  or  four  languages  can  travel  over 
nearly  all  of  it,  and  he  can  find  on  most  of 
its  habitable  coasts,  and  in  many  parts  of 
the  lately-discovered  interior,  the  appli- 
ances which  are  to  him  necessaries  of  life. 
The  world  is,  in  fact,  becoming  an  enlarged 
Europe,  so  far  as  the  externals  of  life  and 
the  material  side  of  civilisation  are  con- 
cerned. The  dissociative  forces  of  Nature 
have  been  overcome. 

Putting  together  the  two  processes,  the 
process  in  time  and  the  process  in  space, 
which  we  have  been  reviewing,  it  will  be 
seen  that  the  main  line  of  the  develop- 
ment of  mankind  may  be  described  as  the 
transmission  and  the  expansion  of  cul- 
ture— that  is  to  say,  of  knowledge  and 
intellectual  capacity.  The  stock  of  know- 
ledge available  for  use  and  enjoyment  has 
been  steadily  increased,  and  what  each 
people  accumulated  has  been  made  avail- 
able for  all.  With  this  there  has  come 
assimilation,  the  destruction  of  weaker 
types  of  civihsation,  the  modification  by 
constant  interaction  of  the  stronger  types, 
the  creation  of  a  common  type  tending  to 
absorb  all  the  rest.  Assimilation  has  been 
most  complete  in  the  sphere  ruled  by  natu- 
ral science — that  is  to  say,  in  the  material 
sphere,  less  complete  in  that  ruled  by  the 
human  sciences  (including  the  sphere  of 
^  .  political     and    social     institu- 

/i,™  .  tions),  still  less  complete  in  the 
«i^;»„^»  sphere  of  religious,  moral,  and 
social  ideas,  and  as  respects  the 
products  of  literature  and  art.  Or,  in  other 
words,  where  certainty  of  knowledge  is 
attainable  and  utihty  in  practice  is  incon- 
testable, the  process  of  assimilation  has 
moved  fastest  and  furthest. 

The  process  has  been  a  long  one,  for  its 
beginnings  reach  back  beyond  our  his- 
torical knowledge.    So  far  as  it  lies  within 

53 


HISTORY    OF    THE     WORLD 


;ng 

her  second  great 

first  was  in  pro- 

n  the  most  an- 

tu  the  sixth  and 

ristian  era. 

"h    itself    had 

'    , :..  well  as  from 

Ue    peoples    of 


the  range  of  history,  it  falls  into  two  periods, 
the  earlier  of  which  supplies  an  instruc- 
tive illustration  of  the  later  one  which  we 
know  better.  The  effort  which  Nature — 
that  is  to  say,  the  natural  tendencies  of 
man  as  a  social  be.  'as  been  making 
towards  the  unification  of 
.1^*  ^i*^^-.     ,  mankind  d'"-;ng    the  last  few 

the  Unity  of  ,       ■ 

^     ...       centuries,  is 

Mankind  „      ,        .L, 

effort.     The 
gress  from  the  time    v\ 
cient  records  begin  dc 
seventh  centuries  of  tl; 
Greek    civilisation, 
drawn  much  from  Eg   • 
Assyria,    Phoenicia,    an 
Asia      Minor,       per- 
meated    the     minus 
and    institutions  (ex- 
cept   the     legal    in- 
stitutions),    of     the 
Mediterranean      and 
West    European 
countries,    and    was 
propagated    by    the 
governing   energy  of 
the  Romans.     In  its 
Romanised    form    it 
transformed    or    ab- 
sorbed    and     super- 
seded   the    less    ad- 
vanced    civilisations 
of  all  those  countries, 
creating      one      new 
type    for    the    whole 
Roman  world.    With 
some  local  diversities, 
that    type    prevailed 
from    the   Northum- 
brian     Wall     of 
Hadrian  to  the  Cau- 


independent  States  which  were  springing 
up.  The  authority  of  Papal  Rome  helped  to 
carry  this  sense  of  unity  among  civilised 
men  through  a  period  of  ignorance,  con- 
fusion, and  semi-barbarism  which  might 
otherwise  have  extinguished  it.  Neverthe- 
less, we  may  say,  broadly  speaking,  that 
the  first  effort  towards  the  establishment 
of  a  common  type  of  civilisation  was,  if  not 
closed,  yet  arrested  by  the  dissolution  of 
the  Roman  Empire  in  the  West.  Close 
thereupon  came  the  rise  of  Islam,  tearing 
away  the  Eastern  provinces,  and  creating 
a  riv^al  type  of  civilisation — though  a  type 
largely  influenced  by  the  Greco-Roman — 
which  held  its  ground  for  some  centuries, 
and  has  only  recently 
shown  that  it  is 
destined  to  vanish. 

The  beginnings  of 
the  second  effort 
toward  the  unifica- 
tion of  civilised  man- 
kind may  be  observed 
as  far  back  as  the 
eleventh  and  twelfth 
centuries.  Its  effec- 
tive and  decisive 
action  may,  however, 
be  assigned  to  the 
fifteenth,  when  the 
spread  of  literary  and 
philosophic  culture, 
and  the  swift  exten- 
sion of  maritime 
discovery,  ushered  in 
the  modern  phase 
wherein  we  have 
marked  its  irresistible 
advance.  This  phase 
differs  from  the  earlier 


casus  and  the  deserts  the  first  traveller  round  the  globe  one  both  in  its  range 

of    Arabia       The    still  ^^^  great  exploit  of  Ferdinand  Magellan,  who   circum-  f„_  :^  prnhrarpc   tViP 

Ol    /\iauicl.       iUL    SllU  navigated  the  globe  m  1519-1520,  ranks  among  the  events  lOr  It  CmOraceS   ine 

independent   races  on  of  world  importance,  and  was  the  culminating  achievement  wholc    earth    and    nOt 

the  northern    frontier  °f  the  greatest  period  of  discovery  in  the  worlds  history.  ^^^^^^    ^^^     Mcditcr- 


of  the  Empire  received  a  tincture  of  it, 
and  would  doubtless  have  been  more 
deeply  imbued  had  the  Roman  Empire 
stood  longer. 

Christianity,  becoming  dominant  at  a 
time  when  the  Empire  was  already  totter- 
ing, gave  a  new  sense  of  unity  to  all  whom 
the  Greco-Roman  type  had  formed,  ex- 
tended the  influence  of  that  type  still 
further,  and  enabled  much  that  belonged 
to  it  (especially  its  religious,  its  legal,  and 
its  literary  elements)  to  survive  the 
political  dominion  of  the  Emperors  and 
to    perpetuate    itself    among    practically 

54 


ranean  lands — and  in  its  basis,  for  it  rests 
not  so  much  upon  conquest  and  religion 
as  upon  scientific  knowledge,  formative 
ideas,  and  commerce.  Yet  even  here  a 
parallelism  may  be  noted  between  the 
ancient  and  the  modern  phase. 
Knowledge  and  ideas  had 
brought  about  a  marked 
assimilation  of  various  parts 
of  the  ancient  world  to  each  other  be- 
fore Roman  conquest  completed  the 
work,  and  what  conquest  did  was  done 
chiefly  among  the  ruder  races.  So  now, 
while  it  is  knowledge  and  ideas  that  have 


Conquest 

and 

Civilisation 


INTRODUCTION   BY   RT.   HON.    VISCOUNT    BRYCE 


worked  for  the  creation  of  a  common  type 
among  the  peoples  of  European  stock, 
conquest  has  been  a  potent  means  of 
spreading  this  type  in  the  outlying  coun- 
tries and  among  the  more  backward 
races  whose  territories  the  European 
nations  have  seized. 

The  diffusion  of  a  f^w  forms  of  speech 

has  played  a  great  part  in  both 

*ii^"f*^^      phases.  Greek  was  spoken  over 

a     ni  ymg     ^j^^  eastern  half  of  the  Roman 

Influence  u     •        .i_  j 

world  m  the  second  century 
A.D.,  though  not  to  the  extinction  of  such 
tongues  as  Syriac  and  Egyptian.  Latin 
was  similarly  sp~>oken  over  the  western  half, 
though  not  to  the  extinction  of  the  tongues 
we  now  call  Basque  and  Breton  and  Welsh  ; 
and  Latin  continued  to  be  the  language  of 


European  languages  which  retain  a  world 
importance.  English,  German,  and  Spanish 
are  pre-eminently  the  three  leading  com- 
mercial languages.  They  gain  ground  on 
the  rest,  and  it  is  EngUsh  that  gains  ground 
most  swiftly.  The  German  merchant  is  no 
doubt  even  more  ubiquitous  (if  the  expres- 
sion be  permitted)  than  is  the  Enghsh  ; 
but  the  German  more  frequently  speaks 
English  than  the  Englishman  or  American 
speaks  German. 

It  has  already  been  observed  that 
assimilation  has  advanced  least  in  the 
sphere  of  institutions,  ideas,  and  Uterature. 
The  question  might,  indeed,  be  raised 
whether  the  types  of  thought,  of  national 
character,  and  of  literary  activity  repre- 
sented by  the  five  or  six  leading  nations  are 


THE    EUROPEANISATION    OF    THE    WORLD 
European  civilisation  is  being  diffused  all  over  the  earth,  superseding  or  essentially  modifying  the  older 
local  types.     The   solid    black  portions   of  this   map   represent  territory  under  Anglo-Saxon  control ;   the 
shaded  parts  are  under  other  European  control,  and  the  dotted  parts  under  Asiatic  and  African  control. 


religion,  of  law,  of  philosophy,  and  of 
serious  prose  literature  in  general  till  the 
sixteenth  century.  So  now,  several  of  the 
leading  European  tongues  are  spoken  far 
beyond  the  limits  of  their  birthplace,  and 
their  wide  range  has  become  a  powerful 
influence  in  diffusing  European  culture. 
German,  Enghsh,  Russian,  Spanish,  and 
French  are  available  for  the  purposes  of 
commerce,  and  for  those  who  read  books 
over  nineteen-twentieths  of  the  earth's 
surface.  The  languages  of  the  smaller 
non-European  peoples  are  disappearing  in 
those  places  where  they  have  to  compete 
with  these  greater  European  tongues, 
except  in  so  far  as  they  are  a  medium  of 
domestic  intercourse.  Arabic,  Chinese,  and 
in  less  degree  Persian  are  the  only  non- 


not  rather  tending  to  become  more  accen- 
tuated. The  self-consciousness  of  each 
nation,  taking  the  form  of  pride  or  vanity, 
leads  it  to  exalt  its  own  type  and  to  dwell 
with  satisfaction  on  whatever  differenti- 
ates it  from  other  types.  Nevertheless  there 
are  influences  at  work  in  the  domain  of 
practice  as  well  as  of  thought,  which,  in 
, .  . .  creating    a    common   body   of 

4i,"'vw-  opinion  and  a  sense  of  com- 
the  Nations      '        •    ^  ,  ,  , 

Toecther  ^^^  interest  among  large  classes 
belonging  to  these  leading  na- 
tions, tend  to  link  the  nations  themselves 
together.  Religious  sympathy,  or  a  com- 
mon attachment  to  certain  doctrines,  such 
as,  for  instance,  those  of  Collectivism,  works 
in  this  direction  among  the  masses,  as  the 
love   of   science   or   of   art    does   among 

55 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


sections  of  the  more  educated  class.  As 
regards  the  peoples  not  of  European 
stock,  who  are,  broadly  speaking,  the 
more  backward,  it  is  not  yet  possible  to 
say  what  will  be  the .  influence  of  the 
European  type  of  culture  upon  their 
intellectual  development. 

The  material  side  of  their  civilisation 
will  after  a  time  conform  to  the 
European  type,  though,  perhaps,  to 
forms  that  are  not  the  most  pro- 
gressive ;  and  even  such  faiths  as 
Buddhism  and  Islam  may  lose  their  hold 
on  those  who  come  most  into  contact 
with  Europeans.  But  whether  these 
peoples  will  produce  any  new  types  of 
thought  or  art  under  the  stimulus  of 
Europe,   as    the   Teutons   and   Slavs  did 


after  they  had  been  for  centuries  in  con- 
tact with  the  relics  of  Greco-Roman 
culture,  or  whether  they  will  be  overborne 
by  and  merely  imitate  and  reproduce 
what  Europeans  teach  them — this  is  a 
question  for  conjecture  only,  since  the 
data  for  predictions  are  wanting. 

It  is  a  question  of  special  interest 
as  regards  the  Japanese,  the  one  non- 
European  race  which,  having  an  Old 
civilisation  of  its  own,  highly  developed 
on  the  artistic  side,  has  shown  an  amazing 
aptitude  for  appropriating  European  in- 
stitutions and  ideas.  Already  a  Japanese 
physiologist  has  taken  high  rank  among 
men  of  science  by  being  one  of  the 
discoverers  of  the  bacillus  of  the 
Oriental  plague. 


DOES    HISTORY    MAKE    FOR    PROGRESS? 


ONE  of  the  questions  which  both  the 
writers  and  the  readers  of  a  History  of 
the  World  must  frequently  ask  themselves 
is  whether  the  course  of  history  establishes 
a  general  law  of  progress.  Some  thinkers 
have  gone  so  far  as  to  say  that  this  must 
be  the  moral  of  history  regarded  as  a 
whole,  and  a  few  have  even  suggested 
that  without  the  recognition  of  such  a 
principle  and  of  a  sort  of  general  guidance 
of  human  affairs  towards  this  goal,  history 
would  be  unintelligible,  and  the  doings  of 
mankind  would  seem  little  better  than 
the  sport  of  chance. 

Whatever  may  be  thought  of  these 
propositions  as  matters  of  theory,  the 
doctrine  of  a  general  and  steady  law 
of  progress  is  one  to  which  no  historian 
ought  to  commit  himself.  His  business 
is  to  set  forth  and  explain  the  facts 
exactly  as  they  are ;  and  if  he  writes 
in  the  light  of  a  theory  he  is  pretty 
certain  to  be  unconsciously  seduced  into 
giving  undue  prominence  to  those  facts 
which  make  for  it.  Moreover,  the  question 
is  in  itself  a  far  more  complex  one  than 
the  simple  word  "  progress "  at  first 
sight  conveys.  What  is  the  test  of 
progress  ?  In  what  form  of  human  ad- 
\iru  •  «k  vance  is  it  to  be  deemed  to 
What  IS  the  ^o^j-i^t  ?    Which  of  these  forms 

Pro*°ess?  ^^  "^  ^^^  highest  value? 
rogress  -p^erc  Can  be  no  doubt  of  the 
advance  made  by  man  in  certain  direc- 
tions. There  may  be  great  doubt  as  to 
his  advance  in  other  directions.  There 
may  possibly  be  no  advance  but  even 
retrogre^ssion,    or    at    least    signs    of    an 

5f> 


approaching  retrogression,  in  some  few 
directions.  The  view  to  be  taken  of  the 
relative  importance  of  these  lines  of 
movement  is  a  matter  not  so  much  for 
the  historian  as  for  the  philosopher,  and 
Wh  M  ^^^  discussion  would  carry  us 
....  *'^'  away  into  fields  of  thought  not 
Ah"  d  fitted  for  a  book  like  the  pre- 
sent. Although,  therefore,  it 
is  true  that  one  chief  interest  of  history 
resides  in  its  capacity  for  throwing  light 
on  this  question,  all  that  need  here  be 
said  may  be  expressed  as  follows  : 

There  has  been  a  marvellous  advance  in 
man's  knowledge  of  (he  laws  of  Nature  and 
of  his  consequent  mastery  over  Nature. 

There  has  been  therewith  a  great  increase 
in  population,  and,  on  the  whole,  in  the  physical 
vigour  of  the  average  individual  man. 

There  has  been,  as  a  further  consequence, 
an  immense  increase  in  the  material  comfort 
and  well-being  ol  the  bulk  of  mankind,  so 
that  to  most  men  necessaries  have  become 
easier  ol  attainment,  and  many  things  which 
were  once  luxuries  have  become  necessaries. 

Against  this  is  to  be  set  the  fact  that 
some  of  the  natural  resources  of  the 
world  arc  being  rapidly  exhausted.  This 
would  at  one  time  have  excited  alarm  ; 
but  scientific  discoveries  have  so  greatly 
extended  man's  capacity  to  utilise  other 
sources  of  natural  energy,  that  people  are 
disposed  to  assume  that  the  loss  of  the 
resources  aforesaid  will  be  compensated 
by  further  discoveries. 

As  to  progress  other  than  material — that 
is     to      say,     progress      in     intellectual 


INTRODUCTION    BY   RT.    HON.    VISCOUNT    BRYCE 


capacity,  in  taste,  in  the  power  of 
enjoyment,  in  virtue,  and  generally  in 
what  is  called  happiness — every  man's 
view  must  depend  on  the  ideal  which  he 
sets  before  himself  of  what  constitutes 
hai)piness,  and  of  the  relative  importance 
to  happiness  of  the  ethical  and  the  non- 
ethical  elements  which  enter  into  the  con- 
.  ception.  Until  there  is  more 
The  Gam  agreement  than  now  exists  or 
*/*  J  has  ever  existed  on  these  points, 

t  e  OSS  ti^gj-g  is  no  use  in  trying  to 
form  conclusions  regarding  the  progress 
man  has  made.  Moreover,  it  is  admitted 
that  nearly  every  gain  man  makes  is 
accompanied  by  some  corresponding  loss 
— perhaps  a  slight  loss,  yet  a  loss.  When 
we  attempt  to  estimate  the  comparative 
importance  of  these  gains  and  losses, 
questions  of  great  difficulty,  both  ethical 
and  non-ethical,  emerge  ;  and  in  many 
cases  our  experience  is  not  yet  sufficient 
to  determine  the  quantum  of  loss.  There 
is  room  both  for  the  optimist  and  for  the 
pessimist,  and  in  arguing  such  questions 
nearly  everybody  becomes  an  optimist  or 
a  pessimist.  The  historian  has  no 
business  to  be  either. 

There  is  another  temptation  besides 
that  of  dehvering  his  opinion  on  these 
high  matters,  of  which  the  historian  does 
well  to  be  aware — I  mean  the  temptation 
to  prophesy.  The  study  of  history  as  a 
whole,  more  inevitably  than  that  of  the 
history  of  any  particular  country  or 
people,  suggests  forecasts  of  the  future, 
because  the  broader  the  field  which  we 
survey  the  more  do  we  learn  to  appreciate 
the  great  and  wide-working  forces  that 
are  guiding  mankind,  and  the  more 
therefore  are  we  led  to  speculate  on  the 
results  which  these  forces,  some  of  them 
likely  to  be  permanent,  will  tend  to  bring 
about. 

This  temptation  can  seldom  have  been 

stronger  than  it  is  now,  when  we  see  all 

mankind    brought    into    closer    relations 

than    ever    before,    and    more 

°  *'"'*         obviously  dominated  by  forces 

as  cry  o  ^^.j^j^j^  3^j-g  essentially  the  same, 
though  varying  in  their  form. 
Yet  it  will  appear,  when  the  problem  is 
closely  examined,  that  the  very  novelty 
of  the  present  situation  of  the  world — the 
fact  that  our  mastery  of  Nature  has  been 
so  rapidly  extended  within  the  last  century, 
and  that  the  phenomena  of  the  sub- 
jugation of  the  earth  by  Europeans  and 
of  the  ubiquitious  contact  of  the  advanced 


and  the  backward  races  are  so  unexampled 
in  respect  of  the  area  they  cover — that  all 
predictions  must  be  uttered  with  the 
greatest  caution,  and  due  allowance  made 
for  elements  which  may  disturb  even  the 
most  careful  calculations.  It  may,  indeed, 
be  doubted  whether  any  predictions  of  a 
definitely  positive  kind — predictions  that 
such  and  such  things  will  happen — can 
be  safely  made,  save  the  obvious  ones 
which  are  based  on  the  assumption  that 
existing  natural  conditions  remain  for 
some  time  operative. 

Taking  this  assumption  to  be  a  legiti- 
mate one,  it  may  be  predicted  that  popu- 
lation will  continue  to  increase,  at  least 
till  the  now  waste  but  habitable  parts  of 
the  earth  have  been  turned  to  account  ; 
that  races,  except  where  there  is  a  marked 
colour  hue,  will  continue  to  become  inter- 
mingled ;  that  the  small  and  weak  races, 
and  especially  the  lower  set  of  savages, 
will  be  absorbed  or  die  out  ;  that  fewer 
and  fewer  languages  will  be  spoken  ;  that 
communications  will  become  even  swifter, 

_  easier,  and  cheaper  than  they 

A  Ghmpsc  ^^g  ^^  present :  and  that  com- 
!c*°r  *  merce  and  wealth  will  continue 

the  Future     ^^     ^^^^^^     subject,     perhaps, 

to  occasional  checks  from  political 
disturbance. 

There  are  also  some  negative  predictions 
on  which  one  may  venture,  and  with  a 
little  more  confidence.  No  new  race  can 
appear,  except  possibly  from  a  fusion  of 
two  or  more  existing  races,  or  from  the 
differentiation  of  a  branch  of  an  existing 
race  under  new  conditions,  as  the 
Americans  have  been  to  some  slight 
extent  differentiated  from  the  Enghsh,  and 
the  Brazilians  from  the  Portuguese  (there 
having  been  in  the  latter  case  a  certain 
admixture  of  negro  blood),  and  as  the 
Siberians  of  the  future  may  be  a  different 
sort  of  Russians.  Neither  is  any  new 
language  hkely  to  appear,  except  mere 
trade  jargons  (hke  Chinook  or  pigeon 
English),  because  the  existing  languages 
of  the  great  peoples  are  firmly  established, 
and  the  process  of  change  within  each 
of  these  languages  has,  owing  to  the 
abundance  of  printed  matter,  become  now 
extremely  slow.  Conditions  can  hardly  be 
imagined  under  which  such  a  phenomenon 
as  the  development  of  the  Romance 
languages  out  of  Latin,  or  of  Danish  and 
Swedish  out  of  the  common  Northern 
tongue  of  the  eleventh  century,  could 
recur. 

57 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


any  forecast.  Conditions 
might  conceivably  come 
into  action  which  would 
split  up  some  or  most  of 
the  present  great  States, 
and  bring  the  world 
back  to  an  age  of  small 
political  communities. 

So,  too,  though  the 
lower  forms  of  paganism 
are  fast  vanishing,  and 
the  four  or  five  great 
religions    arc   extending 


It  may  seem  natural 
to  add  the  further  predic- 
tion that  the  great  States 
and  the  great  religions 
will  continue  to  grow 
and  to  absorb  the  small 
ones.  But  wlion  we 
touch  to])ics  into  wlii(  li 
human  opinion  or  emo- 
tion enters,  we  touch  a 
new  kind  of  matter, 
where  the  influences  now 
at  work  may  be  too 
much  affected  l)y  new 
influences    to   permit  of 

58 


THE    PEOPLES    OF    THE    WORLD    AT    PEACE 
From  the  statuary  groups  on  the  Albert  Memorial. 


INTRODUCTION    BY    RT.    HON.    VISCOUNT    BRYCE 


their  sway,  it  is  con- 
ceivable that  new  pro- 
phets may  arise,  found- 
ing new  faiths,  or  that 
the  existing  rehgions 
may  be  spht  up  into 
new  sects  widely  di- 
verse from  one  another. 
Even  the  supremacy 
of  the  European  races, 
well  assured  as  it  now 
appears,  may  be  reduced 
by  a  variety  of  causes. 


THE    PEOPLES    OF    THE    WORLD    AT    PEACE 
From  the  statuary  groups  on  the  Albert  Memorial. 


physiological  or  moral, 
when  some  centuries 
have  passed. 

Whoever  examines  the 
predictions  made  by  the 
most  observant  and 
l)rofound  thinkers  of  the 
past  will  see  reason  to 
distrust  almost  all  the 
predictions,  especially 
those  of  a  positive  order, 
which  shape  them- 
selves in  our  minds 
to-day. 

James  Bryce 
59 


Ht^Iia^ 


SUMMARY  OF  WORLD  HISTORY 


A    CHRONOLOGY    OF 

By  Arthur  D 


WITH 

TEN 


THOUSAND    YEARS 
Innes,   M.A. 


WITHIN  the  memory  of  living  men, 
the  most  advanced  ])eoples  of  the 
world  believed  that  the  world  itself  had 
been  created  not  6,000  years  ago.  We 
have  all  learned  now  that  the  globe  itself, 
that  life — and  long  later  mankind — came 
into  being  thousands,  hundreds  of  thou- 
sands— it  may  be  millions — of  years  ago. 

How  long  precisely,  none  can  tell. 
What  we  do  know  with  certainty  is  that 
before  the  continents  finally  emerged  in 
their  present  shape  there  was  an  Ice  Age, 
immediately  })receded  by  what  is  called 
the  Drift  Age,  and  that  as  early  as  the 
Drift  Age  man,  the  maker  of  implements, 
lived,  and  did  battle  with  the  cave  bear  and 
other  monsters.  Where  man  first  came 
into  being,  how  he  spread  over  the  globe, 
how  the  great  races  acquired  their  charac- 
teristics, we  can  only  conjecture. 

Wherever  and  whenever  man  appeared, 
the  earliest  traces  show  him  to  have  been 
a  sociable  animal  living  in  communities. 
The  earliest  unmistakable  traces 
of    civilisation,    order,    polity. 


The    Birth 
of  the 
Nations 


are  found  in  the  basins  of  the 
Nile  and  the  Euphrates,  dating 
probably  as  far  back  as  ten  thousand 
years  ago.  The  people  who  built  the 
Pyramids  had  already  advanced  far  in  the 
knowledge  which  gives  man  the  mastery 
over  Nature  ;  and  the  Pyramids  were  built 
certainly  3,000,  and  probably  nearer  5,000, 
years  before  the  Christian  era.  And  while 
those  pristine  civilisations  rose  and  fell  in 
Egypt,  civilisations  were  rising  and  pass- 
ing away  in  Mesopotamia  also. 

In  the  fourth  millennium  there  appears 
first  a  peoi)le  with  new  characteristics — 
the  Semitic  race,  gradually  dominating 
the  Mesopotamian  civilisation,  spreading 
westward  in  successive  waves  to  the 
Mediterranean,  surging  into  Egypt  and 
out  again ;  creating  the  Emjiires  of 
Babylonia  and  of  Assyria,  and  the  Phoeni- 
cian and  Canaanite  nations.  And  while  the 
Semite  Empires  rose  and  fell,  and  Egypt 
held  upon  her  ancient  way,  still  mightier 
nations  were  coming  to  birth.  The  great 
Aryan  or  Indo-Eurojjean  migrations  began, 

60 


the  Celt,  the  Latin,  and  the  Hellene  rolling 
westward  by  the  Euxine  and  the  Northern 
Mediterranean  ;  while  another  group  passed 
southward,  to  the  East  of  the  Semites, 
spreading  the  Aryan  conquest  over  the 
greater  part  of  the  Indian  peninsula. 

Of  the  doings  of  the  great  Semitic  Powers 
in  the  second  millcnium  B.C.  we  have  some 
knowledge  from  the  Hebrew  records  ;  and 
^     r.-  •        yt'iii"    hy    year   fresh    light    is 

Conflicts         ii  it  1       u 

-  .     .     ^     thrown   on    those    records    by 
of  Ancient  ■    .•  1    ^    11    .  1 

p  mscriptions  and   tablets  newly 

discovered  or  newly  decij)hered, 
Egyptian,  Assyrian,  or  Hittite.  Of  the 
Hittite  or  early  Syrian  dominion  we  know 
little  enough,  except  that  it  successfully 
defied  the  invading  armies  of  Assyrian 
kings  and  Egyptian  Pharaohs.  Before 
1500  the  Semite  conquerors  of  Egypt,  the 
Hyksos,  were  driven  out — an  event  asso- 
ciated by  some  authorities  with  the 
Hebrew  Exodus.  From  this  time  the  ebb 
and  flow  of  Egyptian  and  Assyrian  dynas- 
ties are  more  definitely  recorded.  In  the 
closing  centuries  the  prosperity  of  Tyre 
and  Sidon  reached  its  height,  and  the 
theocratic  Hebrew  nationality  formed  a 
kingdom.  We  become  aware  of  Hellenic 
or  kindred  Powers  in  Asia  Minor,  at  Troy, 
in  Crete,  at  Mycenae  ;  of  Acha^ans  and 
Danaans  in  Egypt. 

Before  another  five  hundred  years  had 

passed,  throughout  the  coasts  and  islands  of 

the  ^gean  Sea,  iEolians,  lonians, 

The  First  j^Qj-j^ns    established    themselves 

'  ormation  ^^  cities,  and  every  city  rapidly 

01  otates  •    ,  i  •    -11  I 

grew    mto    a     highly-organised 

State.  Over  the  Mediterranean,  to  Southern 
Italy,  to  Sicily,  to  Marseilles,  the  new  Greek 
civilisation  carried  its  commerce  and  its 
culture.  In  Italy  the  Latin  races  were  in 
like  manner  forming  themselves  into  city- 
states,  develojiing  conceptions  of  Govern- 
ment undreamed  of  by  Oriental  minds. 
Rome  was  founded,  and  acquired  a  leader- 
ship. Throughout  the  Hellenic  and  the 
Latin  world  the  idea  of  civic  freedom  took 
root  ;  the  primitive  monarchical  systems 
disappeared,  and,  through  revolutions  and 
temporary  despotisms,  sometimes  peaceful 


TIAE-TABLE    OF    THE    WORLD  :     B.C.     8000     to    500 

This  Chronology,  prepared  as  a  companion  to  the   Summary  of  the  World's  History,  sets  forth 
in  tabular  form  for    ready  reference    the  events  dealt   with  in   the   narrative   on   opposite  pages 


B.C. 

8000 
7000 

6000 

5000 

4000 

3000 


1500 


900 


800 


700 


600 


500 
B.C. 


Early  civilisation  of  the  Nile  Basin.     Egypt  before  the  Pyramids. 

Asiatic  invasion  of  Egypt. 

Pro-Semitic  civilisations  of  the  Euphrates  Basin.     Susa  founded. 

Invasion  of  Es;ypt  by  dyna,stic  race,  5800.    Mena  rules  all  Egvpt.    First  dynasty,  5500. 
Babylonian  kingdoms  of  Sumer  and  Akkad.    Ea  founds  Eridu  and  civilises  Babylonia 


Ej);ypt :    The  Pyramid  builders.     Great  Pyramid  built  by  Khufu  (Cheops),  4700. 
Earliest  monuments  to  kings  in  Babylonia,  4700. 


Egypt  invaded  from  the  north.  First,  or  Babylonian,  Semitic  wave  in  the  Euphrates 
Valley.  Rise  of  Babylonian  kingdoms.  Sargon  and  Naram-Sin,  Semitic  rulers  of 
Akkad.     Midtlle  kingdom  of  Egpyt.     Revival  of  art.     Twelfth  dynasty  (3400). 

Gudea's  rule  in  Babylon.     Development  of  commerce,  3300. 

Egypt  invaded  by  the  Hyksos,  nomadic  Semitic  conquerors,  the  "Shepherd  Kings." 

Fifteenth  Dynasty  (2500).      Second  Hyksos  movement  (2250). 
Conquest  of  Babylon  by  Elamites.    Rule  of  Hammurabi  ( Amraphel  of  Gen.  xiv.),  2129. 
Second,  or  Canaanite,  Semitic  wave,  extending  to  the  Mediterranean. 
First  Aryan  migration  westward  over  Europe,  and  southward  ;  conquest  of  Hindostan. 

The  Hyksos  dominate  Egypt.     New  kingdom.     Eighteenth  dynasty,  1580. 

Expulsion  of  the  Hyksos,  about  1560. 

Rise  of  Assyria. 

The  Kassite  dynasty  in  Babjdon,  about  1750-1130. 

Hittite  Empire  in  Syria. 

Latin  and  Hellenic  entry  into  Europe  and  Asia  Minor. 

Third  (Aramaean)  Semitic  wave,  dominating  W.  Asia,  but  absorbed  in  existing  states. 

Far  East:  Beginning  of  definite  Chinese  history',  with  the  Chau  dynasty. 

E.GYPT :  Nineteenth  dynasty,  Sethos  and  the  Ramesides  ;  struggle  with  Hittite  Empire. 

Western  Asia:   Burnaburiash.  1380.     Pashe  dynasty  in  Babylon,  1130-1000. 

Period  of  Phoenician  prosperity. 

Rise  of  the  United  Kingdom  of  the  Hebrews. 

Crete,  Troy,  and  INIycenae.   The  Ionic  and  Doric  migrations. 

Western  Asia  :    The  Hebrew  kingdom  divided  into  Judah  and  Israel  or  Samaria. 

Rise  of  Arama?an  kingdom  of  Syria.   Chaldean  domination  in  Babylon. 

Assyrian  Middle  Empire. 
Egypt:   Twenty-second  dynasty  ("Shishak"  king  of  Egypt). 

Europe  :    Early  monarchical  governments  replaced  usually  by  aristocracies. 

Probable  period  of  the  Homeric  poems. 
Western  Asia:   Successful  resistance  of  S5n'ia  to  Assyria. 

Appearance  of  the  (Aryan)  Medes  in  the  East. 
Africa  :   Founding  of  Carthage. 

Egypt  :   Domination  of  Ethiopians  or  Cushites. 

Western  Asia  :   Assyrian  New  Empire  ;  conquest  of  Syria,  Samaria,  and  Babylon. 

Lydian  and  Phrygian  kingdoms  in  Asia  Minor. 
Europe  :   Development  of  city  states  in  Greece  and  Italy.      Lycurgan  legislation  of 

Sparta,  about  800. 

Rome  founded  as  a  monarchy,  753. 

S]iread  of  Greek  colonies  along  Mediterranean  coasts  and  islands. 


Western  Asia  :   Extension  of  Lydian  kingdom  in  Asia  Minor.  687-546. 

Irruption  of  Cimmerians  from  the  North. 

Repulse  of  Sennacherib  before  Jerusalem.      Decline  of  Assyria. 
Egypt  :    Invasion  by  Esarhaddon.     Expulsion  of  Cushites.     The  Saitic  dynasty. 
Europe  :  Between  700  and  500,  sporadic  displacement  of  aristocracies  by  "  tyrannies," 
followed  either  by  an  oligarchical  restoration  or  by  democracies. 

Rome  becomes  head  of  the  League  of  Latin  cities. 
Far  East  :    Japanese  history  begins. 


western  Asia:   Narhonaul,  Kmg  ot   Babylon  (556-53S).     Overthrow  of  Assyrian 

by  New  Baby'onian  Empire  ;    the  Babylonish  captivity. 
Rise  of  Media,  of  which  Cyrus,  the  Persian,  makes  himself  master. 
Persian    Em])ire:     Overthrow   of   Lydia,  New   Babylonia,   and    Egypt.     Aahmes 

(.Xniasis),  570-526. 
Far  East  :   Confucius  and  Lao-Tse  in  China,  and  Buddha  in  India. 
Europe:  Greek  states  consolitlated.     Athens:  Solon  594.      Pisistratidae  expelled,  510. 
Rome:    Expulsion  of  the  kings,  about  510.     The  Commonwealth.     Administration 

aristocratic  :     Army    and    legislative    assembly   on    basis    of    land-ownership. 

Etruscan — pre-Latin — domination  in  Italy. 


61 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


and  sometimes  violent,  the  States  took  on 
for  the  most  part  a  Repubhcan  form. 

In  the  East  an  Aryan  Power  overthrew 
the  last  of  the  Assyrian-Babylonian  dy- 
nasties ;  but  these  Persian  conquerors 
became  assimilated  to  the  conquered 
nations.  Fundamentally  their  empire 
was  of  the  same  type  as  its  predecessors. 
The  Persian  sway,  however,  extended  not 
only  into  Egypt  but  over  the  partly 
Hellenised  Asia  Minor ;  and  the  Ionic 
revolt,  in  the  first  year  of  the  fifth  century 
B.C.  brought  the  spirit  of  the  East  and 
the  spirit  of  the  West  into  fierce  collision. 
The  great  king  hurled  his  hosts  against 
defiant  Hellas  ;  at  Marathon  and  at 
Salamis,  Athens  shattered  his  army  and 
his  fleets.  Thenceforth,  for  a  thousand 
years,  the  West  was  the  aggressor. 

But  the  rolling  back  of  the  "  barbarian  " 

tide  was  not  the  only  glory  that  fell  to 

Athens  ;    in  that  same  century  the  little 

state    bore  sons  whose  names 

t?*  *k  '^t'^"*^  ^^  the  front  rank  of  the 
,        "^f  ,       immortals  for  all  time  :  ^Eschy- 

immortals       ,  11-^11  t->i  ■  t 

lus  and  Sophocles,  Phidias, 
Pericles,  Socrates,  and  Plato  ;  in  the  next 
half  century,  Demosthenes ;  with  others 
almost  if  not  quite,  on  the  same  plane.  The 
character  of  Athens,  idealised,  no  doubt, 
is  epitomised  by  Thucydides  in  the 
speech  of  Pericles.  She  was  the  sum  of  all 
that  was  best  and  nolilcst  in  Hellenism — 
its  love  of  freedom,  of  beauty,  of  energy, 
of  harmony,  and  its  public  spirit.  Politi- 
cally, the  story  of  the  period  which 
followed  Salamis  is  mainly  one  of  the 
rivalry  between  Athens  and  Sparta ; 
until  the  rise  of  Macedon,  when  King 
Philip  made  himself  master  of  all  Hellas. 
Then,  with  the  beginning  of  the  last 
quarter  of  the  fourth  century,  Alexander 
the  Great  blazed  upon  the  world,  toppled 
_,  the  emjiires  of   Western    Asia 

^      .  Ixfnre   him,  conquered  Egypt, 

^rAi-,,-^—''^"'^'  swo])t  over  the  great  moun- 

tain-barriers  into  India,  where 
Buddhism  had  already  begun  to  displace 
the  ancient  Brahmanism  of  the  first  Aryans. 
The  Greek  influences  did  not  long  linger 
in  the  far  East  after  the  great  conqueror's 
death.  His  empire  broke  up.  Asia 
west  of  the  Euj)hrates  remained,  indeed, 
under  the  dominion  mainly  of  one  Grecian 
dynasty,  the  Seleucid.-e ;  Egypt  under  that 
of  another,  the  Ptolemies.  Yet  Alexan- 
der's attempts  to  blend  East  and  West 
failed.  Orientalism  aliode,  unconquercd, 
ineradicable  ;  Hellenism  prevailed  almost 
62 


after  the  fashion  of  British  domination  in. 
India  to-day,  in  the  land,  but  not  of  it. 

Meanwhile,  the  struggle  between  Aryans 
and  non-Aryans  had  been  running  a 
partly  separate  course  in  the  West,  The 
Phoenicians  of  Carthage  and  the  pre- 
Aryan  Etruscans,  the  dominant  power  in 
Italy,  made  a  joint  assault  on  the  Greeks 
of  Sicily  and  the  Latins  of  the  mainland 
at  the  beginning  of  the  fifth  century. 
They  were  beaten  back,  but  for  a  century 
the  struggle  continued  between  Rome  and 
Veii.  The  great  Celtic  incursion  of  the 
Gauls  threatened  destruction  to  Rome, 
but  completed  the  destruction  of  Etruria. 
In  the  fourth  century  and  the  first  half  of 
the  third  century  B.C.  Rome  was  chiefly 
engaged  in  the  double  task  of  achieving 
supremac}^  passing  into  actual  dominion 
among  the  Latin  states,  and  of  establishing 
the  great  Senatorial  oligarchy,  against 
whose  stubborn  resolution  the  Epirote 
Pyrrhus  hurled  himself  in  vain. 

Just  sixty  years  after  Alexander's 
death  began  the  sixty  years'  struggle 
between  Rome  and  Carthage,  in  the  latter 
years  of  which  the  genius  of  Hannibal  was 
pitted  against  the  grim  persistence  of  the 
Roman  oligarchy.  Carthage  fell ;  Rome 
triumphed,  and  with  her  triumph  entered 
on  her  career  of  extended  conquest. 

The  organisation  which  had  ruled  the 
city-state  itself  not  ill,  and  raised  it  to  an 
immense  pre-eminence,  sufficed  also  to 
maintain  its  powers  of  conquest, 
but  not  its  political  virtue, 
Rome's  armies  subdued  the  di- 
vided and  disorganised  realms 
which  more  or  less  recognised  the  over- 
lordship  of  Macedon  ;  they  made  the 
Ptolemies  and  the  Seleucids  acknowledge 
their  supremacy  ;  they  shattered  the  new 
barbarian  hordes,  which  began  to  pour 
across  the  Alpine  passes,  and  the  African 
tribes  of  Numidia.  But  the  lofty  public 
spirit  was  gone  which  had  made  Rome 
so  great  when  she  was  battling  for  life. 
Reformers  arose,  only  to  prove  that 
there  was  no  power  in  the  constitution 
strong  enough  to  enforce  reform.  Vic- 
torious generals  with  their  legions  behind 
them  began  to  dictate  legislation  ;  Marius 
and  Sulla,  democrats  or  reactionaries, 
signalised  their  political  successes  by 
slaughtering  hecatombs  of  their  opponents. 
At  last,  statesmanship  and  generalship 
found  their  supreme  incarnation  in  one 
person,  Julius  Ca\sar.  For  many  years 
one    of    the     two    foremost    men    in    the 


The 

Triumph  of 
Rome 


TIAE-TABLE      OF      THE      WORLD:      B.C.      500      to      1 


Collision  of  East  and  West.     The  Glory  of  Greece.     Alexander  and  His  Conquests.     The 
Rise    of   Rome.     Overthrow  of    Carthage   and   the    Establishment    of    the    Roman    Empire 


B.C. 

500 


450 


The  East  and  Africa 

Greece:   Revolt  of  Ionian  (iieeks  from  Persia, 

499. 
Liberation  from  Persia  of  Greek  States  in  Asia 

Minor. 

Revolt  of  Egypt  from  Persia  :  re-conquest. 


Egypt  again  independent  of  Persia. 


Revival   of    Persian   energy   under   Artaxerxes 
Ochus. 


Europe 

Greece  :  Repulse  of  Persia  at  Marathon  (490), 
Salamis  (480)  and  Plataea  (479)  and  of 
Carthage  by  Syracuse  at  Himera  (4S0). 

Rome:  Increase  of  political  power  of  Plebeians. 
Tribunes.  First  Roman  Legal  Code  (the  XII. 
Tables). 

Greece  :   Age  of  Pericles,  the  great  Athenian 
dramatists,  and  Phidias. 
Struggle  for  supremacy  between  Athens  and 
Sparta. 
Rome  :  Decadence  of  Etruscan  power. 

Progress  of   Plebeians  in  obtaining  adminis- 
trative power. 


Greece:  Socrates  and  Plato. 

Spartan  and  Theban  supremacies. 
Rome:  Invasion  by  the  (iauls. 

The  land  question:  the  Licinian  Laws. 

Establishment  of  new  •'  Senatorial  "  oligarchy. 

Extension  of  Roman  military  settlements  or 
colonies. 


Overthrow    of    Persia    by    Alexander  ;     India 

invaded. 
Partition  of  Alexander's  Empire.   The  Ptolemies 

in  Egypt,  and  the  Seleucidas  in  Asia. 
Friendly      relations     between      Seleucus     and 

Chandragupta  of  Hindostan. 


Greece:    Philip   of    Macedon.      Demosthenes 
at  Athens.     Aristotle. 
Conquests  of  Alexander  the  Great,  334-322. 
Rome  :  Second  Roman  treaty  with  Carthage. 
Dissolution  of  Latin  League.     Supremacy  of 
Rome  in  Italy.     Samnite  wars. 


Contests  between  Syria  (Seleucida;)  and  Egypt 
(the  Ptolemaic  dynasty). 


Asoka,  kingof  Maghada  (Hindostan),  Kuddhist. 
Extension    of    the    Seleucid    dominion    under 

Antiochus  the  Great. 
Rise  of  the  Parthian  dominion  of  the  Arsacida;. 
Fall  of  Carthage,  202. 


Rome  :    Legislative  power  of  Plebeian  Comitia 
Tributa  established. 

Pyrrhus  in  Italy  and  Sicily. 

Treaty  between  Rome  and  Egypt. 

Senatorial  supremacy  at  Rome. 

First  Punic  War  (264-241). 
Greece  :  Rise  of  the  Achaean  League. 


Carthaginian  power  established  in  Spain. 
Rome:  Second  Punic  War,  218-201.   Hannibal  in 

Italy,    21S-203.      Scipio    in    Spain,    2ii-2of). 

Zama,  202. 
Extension  of  Roman  dominion  over  Spain  and 

North  Africa. 


Wars  between  Parthia  and  the  Seleucida-. 

Maccabean  revolt  of  Juda-a. 

Antiochus     Ejiiphanes     conquers     Egyjit,     but 

retires. 
Egypt  and  Syria  become  Roman  protectorates. 


Organisation  of  provinces  subject  to  the  Imperial 

Republic. 
History  of  Europe  merges  in  that  of  Rome. 
Collision  of  Rome  with  (i)  Macedon;  (2)  the 

Syrian  kingdom  of  the  Seleucida;. 
Macedon  becomes  a  Roman  province. 
Rome  assumes  protectorate  of  Egypt  and  Syria. 


Nabatxan  .State  in  Arabia. 

A  Tartar  kingdom  established  in  east  of  Parthia. 

Jugurthan  War  in  Africa. 


Third  Punic  War,  and  destruction  of  Carthage, 
146. 

Greek  States  absorbed  into  province  of  Mace- 
donia. 

Development  of  political  power  of  (i)  dema- 
gogues; (2)  soldiers. 

The  Gracchi,  133-121. 

Conquest  of  .Soutli  Gaul:  defeat  of  Teutones 
and  Cimbri  by  Marius. 


Mithradatic  wars,  88-63. 

The    East,    to   the    Euphrates,   brought    under 

Roman  dominion. 
Jud;ea:  fall  of  the  Maccabees. 


Social  war.     Marius  and  Sulla.     The  Proscriir 
The  Sullan  Constitution,  81.  [tions. 

Pompey.     Rise  of  Julius  Ca?sar. 
The  East  brought  under  Roman  dominion. 
Cassar  conquers  Gaul ;  lands  in  Britain. 


Scythian  or  Tartar  incursion    into    India,  and 
admixture  with  Punjab  races. 

Egypt  becomes  a  Roman  province,  30. 


Overthrow  of  Pompey :  Caesar  virtual  emperor. 

Murder  of  Caesar,  44. 

Rivalry  of  Antony  and  Octavian,  43-30. 

The  Principate,  or  Empire,  established  under 
Augustus  (Octavian)  in  virtue  of  the  Ini- 
periuni  I^rcconsulare  (27)  and  Tribunicia 
Potestas  (23).     The  PZmpire  organised. 

Cicero,  Virgil,  Livy,  Horace. 


63 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Republic,  he  finally  crushed  his  rival 
Pompeius  and  became  acknowledged  head 
of  the  state.  Before  he  could  complete 
the  work  of  reconstruction,  Casar  fell 
beneath  the  daggers  of  Republican  enthu- 
siasts ;  but  ere  many  years  had  passed 
his  adopted  son  Octavian  triumphed  over 
all  rivals,  and  established  the  Principate 
or  Empire,  the  absolute  dominion  of  one 
ruler  over  the  whole  Roman  world — 
although  that  dominion  was  still  main- 
tained under  the  Republican  forms. 

A  tremendous  event  in  itself,  the  reign 
of  Augustus  also  witnessed  one  which  has 
had  a  great  influence  on  the  history  of  the 
world — the  birth  of  Christ.  His  ministry, 
Th  B'  fh  *°  which  perhaps  the  term 
-  pvent  should  be  applied,  was 

Christ  during      the      reign     of      the 

second  Emperor,  Tiberius.  The 
new  laith  born  on  the  soil  of  Judaea  was 
to  modify  profoundly  all  the  ideals,  social 
and  political  as  well  as  theological  and 
personal,  of  the  entire  Western  world  ; 
but  for  many  years  its  adherents  remained 
nothing  more  than  a  persecuted  yet 
steadily  growing  sect ;  suspected  and 
hated  as  anarchists  rather  than  as  mis- 
believers, in  a  world  where  the  rankest 
and  wildest  superstitions  lived  side  by 
side  with  a  general  intellectual  scejiticism. 
For  four  centuries  the  Imperial  city 
ruled  over  nearly  the  whole  known 
world.  Beyond  the  Euphrates  on  the 
east,  beyond  the  Rhine  and  the  Danube, 
she  could  maintain  no  permanent 
footing  ;  within  her  own  borders  it 
seemed  as  though  her  sway  became  a  j^art 
of  the  natural  order — so  much  so  that 
when  her  power  had  jiassed  away  her 
very  conquerors  did  her  homage  and  took 
upon  themselves  titles  as  her  officers. 

P)Ut  the  overthrow  was  yet  a  long  way  off. 
The  reconstruction  organised  by  Augustus 
_        .  and  his  Ministers  was  developed 

Y^^^  by  able  rulers — Tibenus,  Tra- 

Decline  J'*"'  Hadrian,  the  Antonines— 
during  some  two  hundred 
years,  in  spite  of  intervals  when  a  mur- 
derous tyranny  or  a  feeble  incompetence 
occupied  the  throne  of  the  Cresars.  From 
the  Pillars  of  Hercules  to  the  river  of 
Mesojiotamia,  northward  as  far  as  Britain, 
.southward  to  the  deserts  of  Africa,  Roman 
civilisation,  Roman  law  and  justice,  Roman 
military  discipline,  and  Roman  roads 
maintained  the  Roman  peace. 

Then  came  an  era  when   the   Imperial 
purple    became    the    ])rize    of    successful 
64 


generals  acclaimed  by  their  legions  ;  and 
the  frontier  armies,  themselves  largely 
formed  out  of  Teutonic  or  other  semi- 
"  barbarian  "  tribes,  found  themselves  face 
to  face  with  new  barbarian  hordes  which 
for  another  century  and  a  half  they  held  in 
check.  But  the  tremendous  external  pres- 
sure on  frontiers  so  vast  made  it  impera- 
tive that  the  Government  should  be  some- 
what decentralised.  At  the  end  of  the 
third  century  Diocletian  parted  the  empire 
into  four  great  divisions.    The  new  system 

i:>  11  rn  could  uot  cudurc  I  Constautine 
Fall  of  Rome    .1        /-        .  1  1 

.  the   Great  agam  became  sole 

„.  rr-  ».  emperor.  Under  himChiisti- 
KiseoiOoths         .f  ,  ,         ,,        ,  , 

anity  was  at  length  adojited  as 

the  state  religion  ;  the  Church  herself  be- 
came a  fundamental  factor  in  the  political 
system  ;  and  the  political  centre  of  gravity 
was  transferred  from  Rome  to  Byzantium. 

Again  the  empire  was  partitioned,  and 
then,  for  a  brief  while  before  the  end  of 
the  fourth  century,  united  again  under 
Theodosius.  But  the  end  was  at  hand.  For 
a  few  years  the  great  general  Stilicho  held 
the  Teutonic  Goths  at  bay  in  Italy,  while 
Vandals  and  Sueves  poured  through  Gaul 
into  Spain.  Then,  early  in  the  fifth  cen- 
tury, Stilicho  died.  Alaric  led  his  conquer- 
ing hordes  to  the  gates  of  Rome,  and  sacked 
the  Eternal  City.  His  successor,  Ataulf, 
took  his  Goths  away,  to  drive  the  Vandals 
out  of  Spain  into  Africa,  and  set  up  a  great 
western  kingdom  on  their  own  account. 
But  after  the  Goths,  fresh  barbarians 
swarmed  in — Tartar  Huns  under  Attila, 
who  wrought  huge  devastation  and  then 
vanished  for  ever  ;  then  fresh  Teutonic 
armies,  which  took  possession  of  Italy, 
though  in  the  East  the  Em})ire  still  held 
its  own.  And  in  Gaul  the  (German) 
Franks  under  their  king,  Clovis  (Chlodwig, 
Ludwig),  established  the  dominion  which 
was  to  give  its  name  to  France  when  the 
Prankish  element  had  almost  passed  out 
of  the  country.  Far-away  Britain  had 
already  been  abandoned,  and  was  falling 
a  ])rcy  to  the  Saxons  and  the  Angles,  the 
"  English "  who  were  driving  the  earlier 
Celtic   inhabitants   before   them    into    the 

.     .         motmtain  fastnesses  of  the  west 
^^eginning     ,^j^^j  j^^^j.^j^     Again,  in  the  East, 

Byzantium  "^  *'"'  sixth  century,  the  empire 
centrcfl  at  I^yzantuun  asserted 
its  power.  Justinian  is  memorable  for  that 
great  codification  of  Roman  Law  on 
which  the  legal  systems  of  half  the  jurists 
in  Europe  have  been  based.  His  reign  is 
famous  also  for  the  exploits' of  his  brilliant 


TIME-TABLE      OF      THE      WORLD 


A.D.      1      to     500 


Organisation     of    the     Roman     Empire.       The     Rise    of    Christianity.        Partition    of    the 
Empire.     The  Barbarian   Invasion  and  Fall  of  the  Western  Empire.      Rise  of  the  Franks 


A.D. 


50 


ISO 


250 


300 


350 


The  East  and  Africa 


Europe 

liejiinning  of  the  Christian  -Era. 

Imperial  system  completed  under  Tiberius. 

Rhine,  Danube,  and  Euphrates  form  frontiers 

of'the  Empire. 
Caligula  and  Claudius  emperors. 
Britain:  Roman  occupation. 
Spread  of  Christianity. 


DL'struction  of  Jerusalem  by  Titus,  70. 


Nero  emperor:  (ialba,  Otho,  Vitellius. 

Vespasian  :  the  "  Flavian  "  emperors. 

Nerva    cliosen     by    Senate    in    succession     t(. 

Domitian.       The    "Five    good    Emperors,"' 

96-180. 
Succession  of  Trajan,  98. 


Arabia  designated  as  a  Roman  province. 

Traj  in's  expedition  to  the  Persian  Gulf  unsuc- 
cessful. Eastward  expansion  of  Rome 
checked. 


Trajan's  campaigns  in  Dacia. 
Administration      organised      under      Hadrian. 
Roman  law  systematised  by  Salvius  Julianas 
Antoninus  Pius. 


400 


450 


500 
A.D. 


Establishment  of  Roman  supremacy  in  Armenia. 


Successful  campaigns  of   Severus  against   Par- 
thians. 


Persian    kingdom   of   the   Sassanides  displaces 
the  Parthian  Empire. 


Development   of    Roman   civilisation   in    Gaul 

and  Spain. 
Campaigns  of    Marcus  Aurelius   in    Pannonia. 

The  legions  in   Illyria,  largely  composed  of 

"  barbarians,"  acquire  power. 
After  Commodus,  series  of  emperors  by  military 

selection. 
Severus  temporarily  assigns  the  West  to  Clodius 

Albinus. 


Further   systematising   of    Roman   law  by  the 

juris  coiisuiti,  Ulpian,  etc. 
Increasing  pressure   of    I  eutonic  tribes   on  the 

frontier.     Campaigns  of  Maximinus. 
Decius      emperor :      official      persecution      of 

Christianity. 


Overthrow  of  Emperor  \'alerian  in  the  East  by 

the  Persians. 
Destruction     of     Palmyra     in     the    reign     of 

Zenobia. 


Extension  of  Buddhism  in  China. 


Advance  of  the  Goths  and  .Alemanni  checked 

by  Claudius  and  .Aurelian. 
Diocletian  emperor.     Division    of    the    I^mpin- 

under    a   subordinate  '',\ugustus"   and    tw^ 

subordinate  "  Ca;sars  " 


Last    persecution    of    Christians    under     Dio 

cletian. 
Constantine  the  Great. 
Constantinople    (New    Rome,    Byzantium)    i> 

made  the  centre  of  the  Empire. 
Christianity  established  as  the   State  religion 

Council  of  Nica;a. 


Unsuccessful  Roman  campaign  against  Persia. 


Temporary  revival  of  Paganism  under  Julian 

the  Apostate. 
Advance     of     the     Goths    checked    by    Theo- 

dosius. 
Empire  separated  into  P'ast  and  West,  396. 
Alaric    the    Visigoth    held    in    check    in    the 

Western  Empire  by  Stilicho. 
Westward  movement  of  Vandals  through  Gaul 

to  Spain. 


Vandals,   expelled   from  Spain,  established   in 
Africa. 


Sack  of  Rome  by  Alaric,  after  death  of  Stilicho. 

End  of  the  Roman  occupation  of  Britain. 

The  Goths  withdraw  westwards.  Establish- 
ment of  the  Visigothic  kingdom  of  Theoderic 
in  Spain  and  Ar|uitania. 

Irruption  of  the  Huns  under  Attila. 


Britain  :  The  coming  of  the  Saxons. 
Barbarian    "  Patricians"    set    up    and    depose 

Western  Emperors. 
Odoacer,  "  King  "  in  Italy,  r  cognises  supremacy 

of  the  Eastern  Emperor  Zeno. 
Theoderic   the   Ostrogoth    founds    a    Teutonic 

State  in  Italy. 
Rise  of  the  Franks  in  (laul,  und'-r  Clovis. 


65 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


general,  Belisarius,  who  destroyed  the 
Vandal  kingdom  in  Africa,  restored  the 
Imperial  rule  in  Italy,  and  recovered 
provinces  in  Asia  which  had  been  in  danger 
of  falling  into  the  grip  of  the  now  aggressive 
rulers  of  Persia.  But  in  the  West,  the  suc- 
cess was  only  temporary.  Under  pressure 
of  Tartar  or  Slav^onic  hosts  from  the 
East,  a  fresh  Teutonic  swarm,  the  Lom- 
bards, entered  Italy  and  mastered  the 
North.  The  significance  of  Rome  now  lay 
in  the  supremacy  of  her  pontificate,  un- 
acknowledged in  the  East. 

In  Spain,  the  Gothic  supremacy  gave 
promise  of  an  orderly  and  just  govern- 
ment. In  the  wide  realms  of  the  Franks 
anarchy  and  bloodshed  were  almost  cease- 
less. In  neither  did  the  dominant  Teutons 
drive  out  the  older  Iberian  and  Celtic 
populations,  as  the  English  were  doing  in 
the  open  lands  of  the  northern  island.  In 
both,  the  German  institutions  were  de- 
veloping into  that  feudal  system  which 
was  utterly  incompatible  with  the  main- 
tenance of  a  strong  central  rule,  since  it 
enabled  a  powerful  vassal  to  bid  defiance  to 
his  nominal  suzerain.  Throughout  the 
sixth  and  seventh  centuries  progress  was 
stayed  in  ancient  Gaul ;  in  Spain  it  was 
to  be  revolutionised  by  a  new  invader. 

Eastward,  at  the  end  of  the  sixth  cen- 
tury, the  Slavonic  wave  was  surging  upon 
the  empire's  northern  frontier ;  in  Asia, 
Persia  was  again  forcing  her 
way  towards  the  Mediterra- 
nean. Both  were  checked  by 
the  Emperor  Heraclius  early 
in  the  seventh  century.  But,  meantime,  a 
new  Power  had  come  into  being.  Moham- 
med had  arisen.  Inspired  by  the  fanatical 
fervour  of  Islam,  the  warriors  of  Arabia, 
soon  to  be  known  as  the  Saracens,  swept 
all  before  them.  They  did  not  at  first  make 
P2uro}ie  their  objective  ;  the  Caliphs  car- 
ried their  conquering  arms  over  Western 
Asia,  into  Egypt,  and  along  the  southern 
coasts  of  the  Mediterranean.  Then  they 
began  to  beat  against  the  emj^re  itself. 
The  eighth  century  had  hardly  opened 
when  they  poured  into  Spain  ;  dissensions 
among  the  Gothic  chiefs  gave  them  prompt 
victory.  They  swept  up  to  the  Pyrenees  ; 
but  their  advance  was  stayed  by  Charles 
Martel,  the  virtual  lord  of  the  Frankish 
kingdom.  On  the  East  their  armies  as- 
sailed Constantinople,  Init  were  disastrously 
repulsed  by  the  Emperor  Leo  the  Isaurian. 
Now,  for  the  first  time,  Paj^al  sanction 
was  demanded  and  obtained  for  a  change 
66 


Islam 


Being 


of  dynasty.  The  last  Merovingian  king 
of  the  Franks  was  deposed  in  favour  of 
Pepin,  the  son  of  Charles  Martel.  He  was 
succeeded  by  his  son,  Karl,  a  German  of 
the  Germans,  despite  the  French  form  of 
his  popular  title  Charlemagne. 

During  his  long  reign  the  ■Vloors  in  Spain 
were  driven  back  beyond  the  Ebro  ;  the 
Saxon  tribes  across  the  Rhine  were  forced  to 
-.     ,  submit  and  to  accept  Christi- 

„.  anity;  the  Lombard   oppres- 

j,     .  sors  of  Italy  were  vanquished ; 

and  on  the  Pope's  initiative, 
Charlemagne  himself  was  acclaimed  and 
crowned  at  Rome  as  emperor  and  suc- 
cessor of  the  Caesars.  All  of  the  West  that 
remained  to  Byzantium  was  Southern 
Italy.  The  revived  empire  came  into  being 
on  Christmas  Day,  a.d.  800. 

The  great  dominion  and  the  organisation 
constructed  by  Charlemagne  fell  into- 
divisions  after  his  death.  The  lands  east  of 
the  Rhine  remained  German  ;  on  the  west, 
the  Teutonic  forces  yielded  to  the  Latin- 
ised Celtic  sp)irit.  Slowly  France  and  Ger- 
many emerged.  In  England  the  supremacy 
among  the  rival  peoples  passed  from  the 
Angles  of  Northumbria  or  of  the  Midlands 
to  the  Saxon  house  of  Wessex.  Hungary 
was  held  by  the  Mongolian  Avars,  presently 
to  be  displaced  by  their  Magyar  kinsmen  ; 
otherwise  Eastern  Europe,  Illyria,  as  well 
as  the  Trans-Danube  districts,  was  being 
gradually  possessed  by  the  Slavonic  races. 
Their  westward  movement  was  decisively 
stayed  in  the  tenth  century  by  Henry  the 
Fowler  and  Otto  the  Great,  who,  for  the 
second  time,  revived  the  "  Holy  Roman 
Empire  "  in  the  West  in  a  form  which 
effectively  translated  it  into  the  "  German 
Emi)ire."  Meanwhile,  the  Vikings  from 
the  north  first  ravaged  the  western  coasts, 
then  wrung  great  provinces  from  the  kings 
of  England,  and  of  "  Francia,"  prei')aring 
for  the  day  when  the  Norman  spirit  should 
set  the  tone  of  Western  Europe. 

In  the  Eastern  Mohammedan  world  the 

Saracen  dominion  was  passing  to  Tartar 

races — to  the  Seljuk  Turks  or  the  Ghaz- 

navid  Turks,  and  later  to  the  Ottomans ; 

the     genuine     Saracens     had 

'^  .  ?.         seen    their    greatest    days    in 
Feudalism  -        ■'       - 


in  Europe 


the  times  of  Harun-al-Raschid, 


when  the  Frankish  Empire 
of  Charlemagne  was  being  dismem- 
bered. Europe  in  the  eleventh  century  had 
passed,  or  was  passing,  into  what  is  dis- 
tinctively known  as  the  Feudal  Period,  or 
later  Middle  Ages.    Everywhere  it  became 


TIME-TABLE     OF    THE    WORLD:      A.D.     500    to    1000 

Teutonic    Races   Dominate   the   West.     Rise    of  Mohammed  ;    extension   of    Mohammedan 
Rule  from  Cordova  to  Kabul.     Western  Empire  Revived  by  Charlemagne  and  again  by  Otto 


A.D. 

500 


550 


600 


650 


700 


750 


800 


850 


900 


950 


1000 
A.D. 


The  East  and  Africa 


Overthrow  of  the  African  Vandal  kingdom  by 
IJelisarius,  general  of  Justinian. 


Europe 

Franks  predominant  on  Rhine  and  in  (iaul. 
Justinian  emperor  at  Constantinople. 

Roman  Law  codified  in  the  Institutes. 

Overthrow   of   Gothic  kingdom   in   Italy   by 

Belisarius.  [in  England. 

Advance  of  Saxons  (South)  and  Angles  (East) 


Buddhism  introduced  in  Japan. 

.\dvance  of  Persia  against  the  Eastern  Empire. 


Lombard  conquest  of  North  Italy. 

Spread   of    Celtic    Christianity   in    Britain    by 

St.  Columba. 
Pontificate  of  Gregory  the  Great. 
Latin    Christianity   introduced    into    Kent    by 

St.  Augustine,  597. 


Overthrow  of  Persia  by  Emperor  Heraclius. 

Mun.VM.MED.     The  Hegira  (622). 

Conquest  of  Egypt  and   Syria  by  the   Caliphs 

Abu-bekr  and  Omar. 
Conquest  of  Persia,  and  extension  of  Caliphate 

over  West  Asia. 


Saracens  (Caliphate)  attack  the  Empire  in  the 

East  and  in  ,\frica. 
Rise  of  the  Shiite  sect  of  Mohammedans. 


England:  Supremacy  of  Northumbria. 
Italy  :       North    under    Lombard    dominion  ; 

South  attached  to  the  Eastern  Emp  re. 
.Avar  dominion  in  Hungary. 
Slavonic  settlement  in  Servia. 


Engl..\nd:     Final    overthrow     of     Paganism. 

Triumph  of  Roman  over  Celtic  Christianity. 
Franks:   Dukes  of  Austrasia  (East    Franks) 

dominate  the  Merovingian  kings. 


Revival    in    India   of    Brahmanism,   gradually 
developing  into  modern  Hinduism. 


Saracens  (or  Moors)  overrun  Spain. 

Saracen  advance  checked  by  Emperor  Leo  the 
Isaurian  at  Constantinople,  and  by  Charles 
Martel  at  Tours. 

Beginning  of  the  Iconolastic  controversy.  Dis- 
cussions between  Papacy  and  Eastern  Church. 


Division  of  the  Caliphate  into  Eastern  (Abassid) 
at  Bagdad  and  Western  (Ommeiad)  at 
Cordova. 

Rise  of  the  Turks  in  the  Caliphate  armies. 

Harun-al-Raschid  Caliph  at  Bagdad. 


England:    Supremacy  of  Mercia. 

Franks  :  Fall  of  the  Merovingian  dynasty. 
Pepin  the  Short  founds  the  Karling  or  Caro- 
lingian  Dynasty. 

Empress  Irene  at  Constantinople. 

FR.A.NKS  :  Karl  the  Great  (Charlemagne)  suc- 
ceeds Pepin  as  king  of  the  F"ranks.  He  drives 
the  Moors  beyond  the  Ebro,  conquers  the 
Lombards,  and  is  crowned  as  Roman  Emperor 
by  the  Pope.     (800). 


Increasing  power  of  the  Western  Caliphate. 


I'atemide  Mohammedan  dynasty  established  in 

Egypt. 
Decline  of  the  Abassid  Caliphs. 


Subjugation  of  the  Saxons  by  Charlemagne. 
Division   of    Charlemagne's    dominion   among 

his  grandsons. 
England  :  Supremacy  of  Wessex  under  Egbert. 
The  Danes,  or  Northmen,  harry  the  coasts  of 

Europe. 


Carolingian      dominion     divided      into     West 

(Francia),      East      (Franconia,      Germany), 

Central  (Burgundy)  and  Italy. 
Pressure  of  Slavonic  peoples  on  East  Germany. 
England;    Atfred   the  Great.     Settlement  of 

the  Danes  in  the  Danelagh.     Organisation  of 

Government,  Law,  etc. 
Advance  of  Magyars  in  Hungary. 
Iceland  colonised,  874-950. 


Recovery  of  Eastern   Provinces  from  the  Sara- 
cens by  the  Byzantine  Empire. 


France  :   Duchy  of  Normandy  ceded  to  Rollo. 
Norway  united  under  Harold  Haarfager. 
England:  House  of  Wessex  kings  of  all  England. 
Germany  :  Henry  the  Fowler,  Saxon  King  of 

Germany,  and  his  son   Otto  the  Great,  check 

the  Magyar  advance. 
Pressure  of  Slavs  on  Eastern  Empire. 


Empire:  Otto  becomes  King  of  Italy  and 
Roman  Emperor.     The  Holy  Roman  Empire 

I       is  from  tliis  time  definitely  German. 

:   France:  The  Capet  dynasty  replaces  the  Caro- 

I       lingian. 

I  Slavs  driven  back  by  Eastern  Emperors.     Rus- 

j  rians  Chiistianised.  Slav  dominion  estab- 
lished in  Poland. 


■07 


HISTORY    OP    THE    WORLD 


the  object  of  the  great  rulers  to  establish 
a  strong  central  government,  and  of  the 
Papacy  to  establish  a  supremacy  over  all 
governments.  Feudalism  and  the  Papacy 
were  the  rivals  of  the  centralising  tendency. 

In  England,  where  a  Norman  dynasty 
and  Norman  aristocracy  established  them- 
selves, the  unifying  process  was  astonish- 
ingly raj^id.  The  country  was  compara- 
tively shielded  from  Papal  interposition  by 
distance.  A  series  of  vigorous 
"^  ^^  and  able  monarchs  prevented 
P**  pure  feudalism  from  ever  get- 

ting developed  ;  it  resulted  that 
in  the  thirteenth  century  baronage  and 
people  made  common  cause  in  imposing 
not  feudalism,  but  constitutional  control 
over  the  kings.  In  France,  the  victory  of 
the  crown  over  feudalism  was  far  slower  ; 
the  feudatories  were  too  powerful,  and 
among  them  were  the  kings  of  England,  as 
dukes  or  counts  of  great  territories  within 
France.  The  Hundred  Years'  War 
was,  in  fact,  not  so  much  a  contest  for 
the  French  crown  as  a  struggle  between 
the  French  kings  and  their  mightiest 
vassals.  It  was  not  till  the  English  had 
been  finally  expelled  that  Louis  XI. 
was  enabled  to  make  the  crown  supreme 
in  France.  There,  as  in  England,  the 
monarchy  never  submitted  to  the  Papacy ; 
it  was  so  far  victorious  in  that  struggle 
that  in  the  fourteenth  century  the  seat 
of  the  Roman  pontificate  was  transferred 
to  Avignon,  and  the  Pontiff  himself 
became  literally  the  creature  of  France. 

Spain  and  Byzantium  alike  remained 
for  the  most  part  outside  the  general 
Euro]")ean  current.  They  were  the  buffers 
between  Christendom  and  Islam.  In  the 
Spanish  Peninsula  the  Moors  were  held 
.  more  or  less  at  bay,  but   the 

ris  en  om  j^^^|  ^^^^  ^^^  freed  from  their 

_         .  dominion    till  the  close  of  the 

Crusades         ^.,         ,,  ,  ,,  .. 

nitecntli  century,  nyzantnun 
held  the  Turks  at  bay  till  the  middle  of 
the  same  century  ;  then  she  fell  for  ever. 
Between  the  eleventh  and  thirteenth 
centuries,  Christendom  carried  on  against 
Islam  the  long  contest  of  the  Crusades  ; 
but  the  warriors  who  took  part  in  those 
wars  neither  fought  nor  organised  as 
though  them'^elvcs  forming  an  organic 
body  ;  the  Christian  hosts  in  Palestine 
were  mere  miscellaneous  gatherings,  united 
only  in  the  tcmjiorary  fits  of  enthusiasm. 
The  Holy  Sepulchre  was  gained,  but  with- 
in a  century  it  was  lost  again  ;  the 
crusading   cause   was   one   to   wliirh    not 

68 


Empire, 
Feudalism, 
&  Papacy 


states,     but     individuals     only,    devoted        | 
themselves.     Conquest  would  have  been 
possible  only  if  the  Crusaders  had  gone        i 
forth  prepared  to  make  their  own  homes        i 
in  Asia.     The  East  could  not  be  held  by        I 
garrisons  with  no   abiding  interest  there.        1 
Islam,  then,  held,  and  more  than  held,        j 
its  own  against  the  West ;    while  during        ' 
these  same  centuries  it  swept  east  and  south        \ 
through   the   passes   of   the   Punjab   into 
India,  establishing  Turk  and  Afghan  king- 
doms over  most  of  the  great  peninsula  ; 
though    the    vast    bulk    of    the    popula- 
tion  there  held  to  the   Hinduism  which, 
born    of    the    earlier     Brahmanism,    had        ' 
almost   expelled    the    Buddhist    religion, 
which,    however,    had    established    itself 
permanently  in  Further  India  and  China. 
The   might   of   Islam  could   have   been 
overthrown  only  by  a  united  Christendom, 
and    for    that    the    disintegrating    forces 
were  too  great.  England  and,  more  slowly,        j 
France  freed  themselves  from   feudalism.        I 
But  Christendom  required  one  head.     If        | 
the  Papacy  had   stood  by  the        ' 
empire,  feudalism  might  have 
been    broken    down,    and    the 
emjieror     have    become    that 
head.    But  the  Papacy  aimed  at  supremacy 
for  itself — the  spiritual  power  was  at  war 
with  the  temporal.     Anti-imperial  factions 
claimed  the  support  of  the  Church  ;   the 
efforts    at    consolidation    of    the    great 
Hohenstaufen  Emjierors,  Barbarossa  and        ' 
Frederick   II.,   were    unsuccessful.      The        i 
empire  itself  became  only  a  congeries  of 
kingdoms  and  dukedoms,  counties,  bishop- 
rics, free  cities,  and  leagues  of  cities,  under 
the  Austrian  house  of    Hapsliurg  ;    while        , 
Rome,  mighty  from  the  days  of  Gregory 
VII.   to    Innocent    III.,    lost    its    prestige 
in   the  captivity  at  Avignon  and  by  the 
Great     Schism     which      followed.        In        j 
England  Wycliffe's  voice  was  raised ;    on        j 
the  south-east  of  the  emjiire  the  Hussite 
wars   raged,    premonitory   of    the    Refor- 
mntion. 

In  1453  Constantinople  fell,  and  the  1 
Turk  was  permanently  established  in  the  ■ 
east  of  Europe.     As  a  counterstroke,  in 

the  west,  not  forty  years  later,        I 
the  Moorish  dominion  in  Spain 
was  wi])ed  out,  Spain  emerging 
as  a  united  Christian  kingdom. 
Before  the  end  of  the  century  Columbus 
and  Gama  had  discovered  America,  and        J 
virtually  rediscovered  India.     Across  the        | 
ocean  a  new,  almost  unlimited  field   for 
expansion,  for  enterprise,  for  rivalry  had        I 


End  of 
the   Middle 
Ages 


TIME-TABLE    OF    THE    WORLD:      A.D.    1000    to    1500 

Development    of    Feudalism.     The    Rise    and   Decadence   of  the   Papacy.     The    Crusades. 
Holy  Roman.  Empire.     The  Organisation  of  England,  France,  and  Spain.     The  Renaissance 


A.D. 

1000 


1050 


1 150 


1250 


1300 


1350 


I4C0 


1450 


1500 

A.D. 


1  he  Non>Christian  World 

Mahnuid   of   Ghazni.      Beginning   of    Moham- 
medan invasions  of  India. 


Power  of  the  Seljuk  Turkish  Dynasty. 


Christendom 

."^candiiuivian  power:  Canute,  King  of  Norway, 

Sweden,  Denmark,  and  Enjjland. 
Francduian  line  of  emperors  ;  Burgundy  reunited 

to  Empire. 
Dynasty  of  Hugh  Capet  in  France. 


England:  The  Norman  conquest,  1066. 
Norman  conquests  in  Sicily  and  S.  Italy. 
Power  of  the  Empire  under  Henry  HI. 
Pontificate     of     Gregory    VII.     (ilildebnuul). 

Beginning  of   the   strugnle  between   r..pacy 

and  Empire  (Henry  IV.) 
First  Crusade. 


Development  of  Papal  power. 

England:  Organisation  of  central  govern- 
ment under  Henry  I.  checked  under  Stephen. 

Norman  kingdom  of  Sicily. 

Conrad,  first  Holienstaufen  emperor.  He 'in- 
ning of  Guelphs  (Papal)  and  (ihibellines 
(imperial) 


Establishment  of  Mohammedan  (Ghori)  dynasty 

at  Delhi. 
Conquests   of  the   Saracens   under  the  Seljuk 

.Saladin. 
Third  Crusade  (Cceur-de-Lion). 


The  Angevin  dominion  of  Henry  II.,  comprising 

half  France. 
England:  End  of  feudal  anarchy.     Ma.ximuni 

power   of    Crown.      Henry    worsted    in    the 

struggle  with  the  Church. 
Chivalry  typified  in  Richard  Cccur-de-Lion. 
P"rederick  Barbarossa  emperor,  1 155-1  i(>o 
City    development.      Eombard    League  ;     and 

German  Free  Cities. 
Advance  of  Moors  in  Spain. 


Genghis  Khan :  Tartar  conquests  in  Asia  and 

irruption  into  Europe. 
Buddhism  obsolescent  in  India. 


Highest  power  of  Papacy,  under  Innocent  III. 
Francis   of    Assisi :    institution   of    Mendicant 

Friars. 
England:    Magna  Charta;    contest  of  Crown 

and  Barons.     Loss  of  Angevin  dominion. 
France  :  Development  of  central  power  under 

Louis  Vni.  and  IX. 
Institution  of  the  Teutonic  knights. 
Break  up  of  the  Eastern  Empire.     Venice. 


Rise  of  the  Ottoman  (Othman)  Turks. 
Khublai  Khan  in  Eastern  Asia. 


Decadence  of  Imperial  power.     First  Habsburg 

End  of  the  Crusading  period.  [emperor. 

Italy  :  Rise  of  Florence.     Dante.     Giotto. 

England:  Establishment  of  Parliament  (Mont- 
fort  and  Edward  I.).  Organisation  of  the 
English  nation. 


Mameluke  Sultans  in  Egypt. 


The  Pap.icy  "  in  captivity  "  at  .-Vvignon. 
Independence  of  Scotland. 
Independence  of  Switzerland 
Ottoman  Turks  establish  a  footing  in  Europe. 
England   and    France:    Beginning  of    the 
100  Years  War. 


Rise  of  the  Ming  dynasty  in  China :  expulsion 
of  Mongols. 

Conquests  of  Timur  the  Tartar  (Tamerlane) 


The  Jacquerie  in  France. 

The  Great  Schism :  period  of  dual  Papacy. 

Engl-^nd:  Peasant  revolt.    Failure  of  Richard 

II.'s  attempt  at  absolutism.     Wycliffe. 
Union  of  Lithuania  with  Poland. 


Empires  of  Me.xico  and  Peru. 


End  of  Great  Schism.     Hussite  wars. 

English  contpiest  of  France,  and  subsequent  ex- 

pulsi(m      Increasing  powers  of  Parliament. 
Invention  of  printing  press. 


Discovery  of  America  by  Christopher  Columbus; 
and  of  Cape  route  to  India  by  Vasco  da  Gama. 


Turks  capture  Constantinople. 

England:  Wars  of  the  Roses,  1455-14S5. 

Maritime  greatness  of  PoRTUGiL.        [Isabella. 

Spain    consolidated     under     Ferdinand     and 

France  consolidated  under  Louis  XI. 

England  con.solidated  under  Henry  VII.  Es- 
tablishment of  absolutism  under  constitu- 
tional forms. 

Revival  of  learning.     Humanists.     Savonarola. 


69 


HISTORY    OF    THE     WORLD 


been  opened  to  the  European  peoples. 
Already  in  the  realms  of  intellect  old 
forgotten  knowledge  had  been  gradually 
recovered  by  the  Renascence,  the  revival 
of  learning  and  letters ;  with  the  intellec- 
tual expansion  and  the  invention  of  the 
printing  press  paths  to  new  knowledge  were 
being  opened.  Men  were  shaking  them- 
selves free  from  the  shackles  of  authority 
and  tradition.  Hence,  the  sixteenth  cen- 
tury witnessed  that  revolt  of  half  Western 
Christendom  from  Rome  which  we  call  the 
Reformation  ;  in  its  essence,  though  by  no 
means  in  its  form  at  the  first,  a  revolt 
against  the  interposition  of  any  human 
authority  between  the  individual  man  an  i 
his  Maker.  With  that  revolt  political 
and  national  divisions  were  inextricably 
blended,  while  the  whole  was  compli- 
cated by  the  new  conditions  of  political 
supremacy  created  by  the  New  World. 

The    next    two    centuries,    then,    saw 

France,    already    a    consolidated    state, 

develop    into    the    first    military    Power 

under    the    most    absolute    monarch    in 

Europe — through   a  stage    of    prolonged 

religious  strife  which  ended  by 

("ma  establishing    the    tolerationist 

j^    .  Bourbon,    Henry  IV.,    on  the 

throne,  through  the  rule  of  the 

two      great      cardinals,      Richelieu     and 

Mazarin,  to   the   intolerant    autocracy  of 

Louis  XIV.,  with  a  close   aristocracy  no 

longer    in   opposition    to   the   crown    but 

allied  to  it. 

In  England  the  development  was  on 
different  lines.  There  we  find  an  absolutist 
movement,  the  outcome  of  the  Wars  of 
the  Roses.  But  however  autocratic  the 
Tudors  were,  they  held  by  constitutional 
forms,  and  preserved  the  intense  loyalty 
of  their  people.  On  Ehzabpth's  death, 
a  century-old  matrimonial  alliance  placed 
the  sceptres  of  England  and  Scotland  in 
a  single  hand. 

Then,  on  the  theory  of  Divine  right,  the 
Crown  attempted  to  override  the  consti- 
tution ;  the  Civil  War  gave  the  power 
neither  to  king  nor  parliament,  but  to  a 
military  dictator.  On  his  death  the  coun- 
try reverted  to  a  compromise  between 
Crown  and  Parliament ;  the  Stuarts,  again, 
with  the  aid  of  their  cousin,  the  autocrat 
of  France,  attempted  to  recover  absolu- 
tism. They  were  driven  from  the  country, 
and  constitutionalism — in  effect,  govern- 
ment by  an  oligarchy  of  landowners — was 
decisively  established.  The  religious  prob- 
lem had    found   a   decisively  Protestant 

70 


Europe 


solution  at  an  early  stage ;  but  Anglican- 
ism and  Puritanism  soon  grew  mutually 
intolerant ;  it  was  only  with  the  Revolu- 
tion of  1688  that  toleration  and  constitu- 
tionalism definitely  triumphed  together. 

Meanwhile,  in  the  reign  of  Elizabeth, 
England  had  asserted  her  intellectual 
eminence  by  giving  birth  to  Shakespeare 
and  to  Bacon  ;  and  had  decisively  dis- 
placed Spain  from  the  ruler- 
ship   of    the    seas.      In    the 

n      I  *  next  century  her  colonisation 

Development       t     t^t     ,^       a 

of  North  America  counter- 
balanced the  Spanish  dominion  in  the 
south  and  centre  of  the  Western  Hemis- 
phere, though  it  was  not  unchallenged  by 
France.  In  the  East  a  great  commercial 
rivalry  had  grown  up  between  English, 
Dutch,  and  French — a  rivalry  still  to  be 
fought  out. 

In  the  early  years  of  the  sixteenth 
century  matrimonial  alliances  had  joined 
Spain,  the  Low  Countries,  and  the  empire 
under  a  single  ruler,  a  Hapsburg  of  the 
(Austrian)  Imperial  house.  The  vast  do- 
minion was  extended  by  the  acquisition 
of  the  golden  territories  of  the  American 
continent.  The  Empire  passed  to  one 
Hapsburg  branch,  Spain  and  her  depend- 
encies to  another.  In  the  empire,  a  tem- 
porary tnodus  Vivendi  was  established 
between  Roman  Catholics  and  Protest- 
ants ;  but  Spain,  the  colossus  which 
threatened  to  dominate  Europe,  was  split 
by  the  revolt  of  the  Netherlands,  and  her 
power  shaken  to  its  foundations  by  the 
collision  with  England.     In  the 

o  ision  sixteenth  century,  Germany 
°      ^  .         was  devastated  by  the  religious 

ynas  les  thirty  Years  War ;  Austria 
emerged  only  as  the  chief  among  a  numl^er 
of  German  states,  and  Holland  won  a 
naval  and  commercial  position  second  only 
to  that  of  England.  The  Ottoman  Turks, 
still  aggressive,  were  still  held  in  check. 
In  India,  a  Turkish  dynasty  known  as  the 
Moguls  (Mughals,  Mongols)  extended  its 
sway  from  Kabul  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Ganges,  and  almost  to  Cape  Comorin. 

At  the  opening  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury the  aggressive  Continental  policy  of 
Louis  XIV.  involv^ed  Eurojie  in  the  "  War 
of  the  Spanish  Succession."  The  French 
king's  armies  were  shattered  by  repeated 
blows  at  the  hands  of  Marlborough  and 
Eugene,  but  he  finally  obtained  his  primary 
object,  the  recognition  of  his  grandson  as 
king  of  Spain.  The  threat  of  a  Hapsburg 
domination  passed  into  the  threat  of  a 


TIME-TABLE    OF    THE    WORLD:    A.D.     1500    to    1700 

New  World  Entered,  and  East  Re-entered.    The  Reformation.     Organisation  of  European  Nations 
under  Absolute   Monarchies.      Constitutional   Struggle   in  England.      English  Naval   Supremacy 


A.D. 

1500 


1520 


1540 


1560 


1580 


1600 


1620 


1640 


1660 


1680 


1700 
A.D. 


Asia  and  Africa 

Tlie  New  World  Ixistovved  on  Spain  and 
Portugal  by  the  Bull  of  Pope  Alexander  \'I. 

Portuguese  dominion  established  in  the  Indian 
seas  by  Albuciuerque. 

Conquest  of  Egyjjt  by  Ottoman  Turks. 

Safid  dynasty  in  Persia  ("  The  Sofy  "). 


First  circumnavigation  completed,  1 522. 
Invasion   of    Hindostan    (Northern    India)   by 
Baber,  the  first  "  Mogul"  emperor,  1526. 


E.\pu!sion  of  Moguls:  dynasty  of  Sher  Shah  at 
Delhi,  1540. 


Francois  Xavier  in  Japan. 
Restoration  of  Moguls,  1556. 


Rule  of  Akbar,  1556-1605. 
Toleration  of  Hinduism. 


Mogul    dominion    established     and     organised 
throughout  Northern  India. 


Development  of  Japanese  Feudalism. 
Reign  of  Jehan  Gir  in  Hindostan,  1605-27. 
First  English  factory  at  Surat,  1611. 
First  English  Embassy  to  Delhi,  1615. 


Reign  of  Shah  Jehan,  1627-5S. 
The  I'aj  Mahal  built. 
End  of  the  Portuguese  power  in  the  East. 
E.xtension   of    the    Mogul    dominion   into    the 
Deccan. 


Rise  of  the  Manchu  (Tartar)  dynasty  in  China. 


Reign  of  Aurangzib,  165S-1707. 
Rise  of  the  Mahrattas  under  Sivaji. 


France  enters  the  field  in  India. 

Revival    ot     intolerant     Mohammedanism     by 

Aurangzib. 
Expansion  of  the  Mogul  Empire  over  Southern 

India. 


Europe  and  America 

Raphael,  Miciiael  Angelo,  and  Titian. 

Rivalry  of  Henry  VIII.  (1509-47),  Francis  I. 
(1515-47),  and  Charles  V.  (1519-56),  who 
combines  Spain,  Burgundy,  and  the  Empire. 

Luther  challenges  the  Papacy,  1517-20. 

The  Reformation  era  opens. 


Turkish  advance  under  Solyman  the  Magni- 
ficent. 

Gustavus  Vasa  in  Sweden,  1523-60. 

Spain  conquers  Me.xico  (1520)  and  Peru  (i53'i)- 

Reformation  :  Subjection  of  Church  to  Crown 
(England).  Confession  of  Augsburg:  Protes- 
tant League.    Calvin  creates  Presbyterianisni 


Russia  :  Ivan  the  Terrible. 

Order  of  Jesuits  formally  established. 

Germany  :  Contest   between    Charles   V.    and 

Protestant  princes  of  Germany  ended  by  com 

promise  at  Peace  of  Augsburg. 
England  :  Protestant  Revolution  (Edward  VI.) 

followed  by   Romanist  reaction   (Mary),  and 

final   establishment  of    Protestantism  (Eliza 

beth)  in  England  and  Scotland. 


Spain  :  Philip  II.  and  the  Inquisition. 

Council    of    Trent    defines    limits    of    Roman 

Catholicism. 
France:  Seriesof  civil  wars  of  religion,  1562-05 
Revolt  of  Netherlands  from  Spain. 
Turkish  advance  checked  at  Lepanto,  1571. 
Portugal  absorbed  by  Spain. 


Gradual  success  of  the  Netherlands  revolt. 
English  naval  supremacy  proved  by  the  Armada 
Decadence  of  Spain.  ['S'^'^ 

France:  Toleration  secured  by  Henri  TV. 
Spenser,  Marlowe,  and  Shakespeare. 


Galileo  and  Bacon. 

Union  of  English  and  Scottish  Crowns,  1603. 
Dutch  and  English  commerce  in  the  East  Indies. 
Virginia,  first  successful  British  colony  in  North 

America,  1606. 
Holland  :  Independence  established,  1609. 
Germany:  Thirty  Years'  War  begins,  1618-48. 


Gustavus  Adolphus. 

Fr.-^nce  :  Richelieu  organises  absolutism. 

England:     Constitutional     struggle    between 

Charles  I.  and  ParHament.     The  Petition  of 

Right,  1628. 
Portugal  recovers  independence. 


France:  Rule  of  Mazarin:  absolutism  estab- 
lished, [protectorate. 

England  :    Civil    War,   resulting   in    militar\ 

Thirty  Years  War  ended  by  Peace  of  Westphalia. 

Commercial  and  naval  rivalry  of  English  and 
Dutch.  [power. 

Development  of  France  into  the  leading  military 


France:  LouisXIV.  initiates  policy  of  aggression 
ENr.L.\ND:  Charles  II.  undermines  supremacy 

of  Parliament.    Repression  of  Nonconformity 

by  Parliament. 
Louis   XIV.  attacks    Holland,  with   occasional 

support  from  Charles  II. 
England:  Attack  on  Romanism. 

Aggressive  movement  of  Turkey.  [16S5. 

France:  Louis  XIV.  revokes  Edict  of  Nantes, 
Constitutionalism    established   in    England   by 

the  revolution  of  168S. 
Wars  of  England  and  Holland  against  France. 
Russia:  Peter  the  Great. 
Newton  and  Leibnitz. 


71 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Bourbon  domination.  In  the  east  of 
Europe  a  final  limit  was  set  to  the  Ottoman 
aggression.  In  Britain,  the  incorporation 
of  Scotland  was  completed,  formally  by 
the  Union  of  1707,  effectively  by  the 
suppression  of  Jacobitism  in  1746. 

From  1739  to  1763  Europe  was  again 
plunged  into  wars,  with  an  eight  years' 
interval.  The  motives  of  those  wars,  and 
of  the  combinations  of  states  on  either  side, 
were  complicated ;  the  results 
e  ing  ^yere  simple.  Prussia,  under 
..    „  Frederick  the   Great,  emerged 

the  Powers  r      .      ^  T-.  T- 

as  a  nrst-class  rower  ;  I' ranee 
lost  her  North  American  Colonies  to 
Great  Britain ;  the  British  East  India 
Company  defeated  the  attempt  of  the 
French  to  establish  a  paramount  influence 
with  the  native  princes,  the  Mogul  EmjMre 
having  broken  up  into  a  congeries  of  prac- 
tically independent  satrapies  ;  and  the 
British  themselves  became  established  as  a 
territorial  Power  by  the  conquest  of  Bengal. 
Russia  also,  organised  at  the  beginning  of 
the  century  by  Peter  the  Great,  had  taken 
her  place  definitely  among  the  great  Powers. 

During  the  next  twenty  years  (1763- 
1783)  Poland  was  absorbed  by  her  neigh- 
bours. The  British  Empire  was  sundered 
by  the  revolt  of  the  older  American 
Colonies,  which  were  established  as  the 
United  States  of  America  ;  while  Canada 
remained  loyal.  By  this  time  the  whole 
of  Europe  was  practically  governed  by 
absolute  monarchies  ;  but  a  cataclysm  was 
at  hand.  France  became  the  scene  of  a 
tremendous  revolution.  Crown  and  aris- 
tocracy were  toppled  into  the  abyss. 

France  proclaimed  herself  the  liberator 
of  the  peoples  ;  the  monarchs  of  Europe 
coml)incd  to  suj)press  the  ]iroletariat. 
.,      ,  During  the  last  decade  of  the 

Napoleon  ,  ,     .. 

.  ,.  century  one  revolutionary  con- 

and  the  ,-,     ^  ■ -^         .^  ,,  -^ 

„  ,  ,.  stitution  alter  another  was  set 
Revolution  n  u  1       ^i  1 

up  in  Pans,  while  the  revolu- 
tionary armies  shattered  monarchical 
armies,  and  turned  the  "  liberated  "  j^eoples 
into  subject  dependencies  of  the  Rejiublic. 
On  the  seas,  however,  Britain  successfully 
asserted  her  supremacy.  Of  the  com- 
manders of  the  Republic,  the  most  bril- 
liant was  the  Corsican  Bonaparte.  He 
dreamed  of  making  Egypt  the  basis  for 
achieving  an  Asiatic  empire,  and  thence 
overwhelming  Europe  ;  but  tlie  dream  was 
shattered  when  he  found  himself  isolated 
by  Nelson's  destruction  of  the  French  fleet 
at  Aboukir  in  the  Battle  of  the  Nile. 
Returning  to  Paris,  he  transformed  the 
72 


republic  into  an  empire  :  he  set  up  his 
brothers  or  his  generals  as  rulers  over  half 
the  kingdoms  in  Europe  ;  he  dictated  terms 
to  every  government  except  Britain.  Bri- 
tain annihilated  his  fleets,  and  fought  and 
beat  his  generals  in  the  S})anish  Peninsula. 
He  conquered  the  kings,  but  the  nations 
rose  against  him,  and  overthrew  him  ;  his 
last  effort  was  crushed  at  Waterloo. 

Absolutism  was  reinstated,  but  the 
proletariats  had  learnt  to  demand  freedom 
Steam  -  power  and  steam  -  traction  so 
changed  the  conditions  of  production  as  to 
revolutionise  the  relations  between  labour 
and  capital,  and  between  the  landed  and 
the  manufacturing  interests.  In  Great 
Britain  political  power  passed  from  the 
landowners  to  the  manufacturers  with  the 
great  Reform  Bill  of  1832,  and  from  the 
wealthy  to  the  labouring  classes  with  the 
Franchise  Bills  of  1867  and  1884.  Every 
monaichy  has  been  compelled  to  submit 
to  limitations  of  its  own  powers  more  or 
less  copied  from  Britian. 

Britain  herself,  not  untaught  by  the 
breach  with  America,  has  learned  to  estab- 
lish res})onsible  government  in  her  Colo- 
nies, making  them  virtually 
free  states  ;  and  among  those 
states  the  idea  of  federation  has 
taken  root  and  is  bearing  fruit. 
In  India,  challenged  by  one  native  race 
after  another,  she  has  extended  her  sway 
over  the  whole  peninsula,  and  has  abolished 
the  anomaly  of  governing  her  great  depen 
dency  through  a  trading  company.  In  the 
West  her  kinsmen  have  raised  the  United 
States  into  a  mighty  nation. 

In  Europe  France  has  passed  through 
monarchy  and  republic  and  second 
empire  intx)  a  stable  rejmblic  ;  Italy  has 
revolted  against  foreign  rulers,  and  become 
a  united  nation  ;  the  small  peoples  of  the 
Balkan  Peninsula  have  now  achieved 
by  arms  their  liberty  from  Turkish  rule. 
Prussia  has  won  the  hegemony  of  the 
German  states,  and  established  a  new 
German  Empire.  Russia,  the  bogey  of 
the  West,  and  of  Britain  in  particular, 
has  shown  her  weakness  in  collision  with 
the  sudden  development  of  Japan. 

Finally,  the  Dark  Continent  has  been 
explored  and  partitioned  :  in  the  south, 
after  a  sharp  conflict,  British  and  Dutch 
are  on  the  way  to  become  a  united  people  ; 
in  the  north,  Egypt  has  ])cen  reorganised 
under  British  administration.  We  end,  as 
we  began,  with  the  land  of  the  Pyramids. 
Arthur  D.  Innes. 


The 

World  as 
it  is 


TIAE-TABLE    OF    THE    WORLD:      A.D.    1700    to    1914 

Struggle  for  Colonial  Supremacy.     French  Revolution  and  Napoleonic  Wars.     Growth  of  Democ- 
racy and  Consolidation  of  European  States.     Colonial  Extension  of   Responsible   Government 


A.D. 

1700 


1720 


1740 


1760 


1780 


1800 


1820 


1840 


i860 


1880 


1910 
A.D. 


Asia,  Africa,  artd  Australasia 


Europe  and  America 

War  of  Spanish  Succession,  1702-13.     Bourbons 

established  in  Spain. 
Career  of  Charles  XII.  of  Sweden,  1697-1718. 
Grkat     Britain:     Incorporating     union    of 

England  and  Scotland,  1707  [Eugene,  1717. 
Turkish  advance  decisively  stopped  by 
Alliance  of  France  and  Great  Britain. 


Struggle  between  British  and  French  in  Southern 
India,  1746-61. 


Clive  conquers   Bengal;    beginning  of    British 
territorial  power  in  India,  1757. 


Anglo-Spanish  War,  combined  with  War  of  the 

Austrian  Succession,  1739-48. 
Development     of     Prussian     military     power 

under  Frederick  William. 


Great  Britain  :  End  of  Jacobitism  (the 
Forty-five)  consolidates  the  union. 

Seven  Years'  War  (1756-63) :  Prussia  and  Great 
Britain  against  I'rance,  Austria,  and  Russia. 
Achievements  of  Frederick.  Overthrow  of 
France  at  sea,  and  in  Canada  and  India. 


British  dominion  receives  Mogul's  sanction. 

Haidar  Ali  in  Mysore. 

Governor-Generalship     of     Warren     Hastings 
(1774-S5),  establishes  the  British  power. 


Dual  control  in  India  by  East  India  Company 
and  Parliamentary  Board  of  Control  set  up 
by  Pitt's  India  Act. 

Administration  of  British  India  systematised. 

Overtlirow  of  Mysore,  and  institution  of  sub- 
sidiary alliances  by  Lord  Wellesley. 


Overthrow  of  Mahratta  power  by  Lord  Hastings 

(1819)  :  e.xtensive  annexations. 
Acquisition  of  Cape  Colony  from  Holland   by 

Great  Britain. 
Gradual  planting  of  Australasian  Colonies. 


Aggressive     Eastward     movement    of     Persia 

checked  at  Herat. 
First  Af.  han  Wars,  1S39-42. 
China  :  First  collision  with  Europe. 


Treaties  of  Paris  and  Hubertsburg  exclude 
France  from  .\nierica  and  India,  and  confirm 
the  position  of  Prussia. 

Partition  of  Poland. 

Great  Britain;  Quarrel  with  Colonies;  lead- 
ing to  War  of  American  Independence,  1775-83. 


British  recovery  of  naval  predominance. 
United    States:    Independence    established 
F'rance  :  French  Revoluton,  1789.  [1783- 

War  between  European  Coalitions  and  French 

Republic,    1792-1802.       Rise    of    Bonaparte. 

Triumphs  of  French  Army  and  British  Navy. 
Great  Britain  :  Legislative  Union  with 
Kant  and  Goethe.  [Ireland. 


War  renewed  (1803)  between  European  Coali- 
tions and  Emperor  Napoleon  (1804). 
Trafalgar  and  Austerlitz,  1S05.  Peninsula 
War,  1808-13.  Moscow  Campaign,  181 2. 
Waterloo  Campaign,  1815     [the  Holy  alliance. 

European  reconstruction.      Absolutist  reaction  : 


Independence  of  South  and  Central  American 
Greek  War  of  Independence,  1822-29.  [States 
France  :      Constitutional      Monarchy     under 

Louis  Philippe,' 1830-48. 
Great  Britain:    Parliamentary  Reform  and 

manufacturing  development     Railways. 


Sikh  Wars,  1845-49. 

Annexations  under  Dalhousie. 

Indian     Mutiny,    1857.       Transfer    of     Indian 

Government  to  British  Crown,  1858. 
Japan  :  Admission  of  foreign  traders. 


Charles  Darwin. 

Revolutionary  movements  in  Europe. 

France:   Republic  (1S49)    passing  to  Empire 

of  Napoleon  III.  (1852). 
Crimean  War,  1854-56.  [British  Colonies. 

Establishment    of     responsible     goverment    in 


Japan  :  Revived  power  of  the  Mikado. 
Advance   of    Russia   in    Central    Asia  towards 
India. 


Second  Afghan  War,  1878-80. 


Mahdism  in  the  Eastern  Sudan;  ended  at  Om- 
durnian  in  189S.     British  control  establislied. 

Partition  of  Africa  into  "  Spheres  of  Influence." 

War  between  China  and  Japan. 

Annexation  of  Philippines  by  United  States. 

South  African  War  (189Q-1902)  and  incorpora- 
tion of  Dutcii  States  into  British  Empire. 

Federation  of  Australian  Colonies,  igoi. 

War  between  Russia  and  Japan,  1904-5. 


American  Civil  War,  1861-65.  Abolition  of 
Slavery.  Independence  of  United  Italy  under 
Victor  Emmanuel.  [States  1866. 

Prussia      acquires       leadership      of      German 

Franco-Prussian  War,  1870-71.  New  German 
hmpire,  and  new  French  Republic. 

Russo-Turkish  War,  1S77-78. 


China:  Revolution:  Manchu dynasty  displaced 

by  Republic,  1912.  [1912. 

Tripoli  annexed  by  Italy  from  Ottoman  Empire, 


British  control  established  in  Egypt. 
Repeated   disturbances    in  the     lialkan    States 
established  by  the  Russo-Turkisb  War 

First  Peace  Conference  of  European  powers  at 
the  Hague,  1899. 

Norway  seuaratesfroni  Sweden  and  elects  King 

Haakon,  1905 
Second  Peace  Conference  at  the  Hague,  1907. 
Allied     Balkan    States   defeat    Turkey,    1912. 
Creation  of  .Albania  asindependent  state,i9i4. 
Revolution  in  Mexico,  1913-14. 


A.D. 

1700 


1720 


1740 


1760 


1780 


1800 


1820 


1840 


i860 


1880 


1910 

A.D. 

11 


Q 

-1 

IT 

o 

(D 

CD 

.4000 
3000 

?ono 

0              0             0 

.?              ^             i 
— ]    1   1  1  1-^  1  1  1   1—1   1  1 

c 
0 

1    1  ■^ 

0               0 
2              § 

oc 

. 

^^^M 

^^ 

^— 

^^^H 

O 

U    D.2 
(DEC 

O  I. 

r 



t: 

1                               1    N   D 

1    A 

^ 

'53  o  o 

;   ■ 

1 

x:  -c 

•*-    2-- 

UJ 

5  = 
C    gi 

F        p.        V        D 

T                                                       r-        ^ 

v/         r\          ^ 

X 

H 
>- 

r         ^ 

fa; 

4      C.       U         T         K 

1 

c.     0 

Y       P        T 

HEBREWS 

D      •Cil_ 

1 

^BABYLONIA                 B 

A    B   Y    L 

0     N      1      A 

Uh  q 

OS 

UJ 
CD 
U 

I-   .a  c 
CU    o~ 

x:  -=5 

fe. 

. 

r           -     «i— 

' ■ 

A      S       S       Y       R 

c  c 

F"- 

r 

■ 

COS 

Z    UJ 

(0    u  o 

\ 

f    H    I  TT   1 

T  E        E 

M  f 

3  1   R  E 

1              1 

■K:  P   H   R  Y 

o^ 

0).- 

H° 

P  E  k 

A  S 

01 

^iOi 

^^ 

>- 

.  -n 

<§ 

CD    0  oj 

E 

z  ^ 

OH 

X 

THE 

INING     OF 

x:  c  . 

CD    ->, 
C    "^ 

0   5^ 

[ 

i            -                             -F 

>      H    QE 

N     1     ( 

:    1    A 

z. 

to   E£ 

O 

C  .5J£ 

Ft      ^ 

-    S- 

O   U 

0  1^ 
0    =1 

UJ  s 

oj-i! 

o 

JO    f  = 

CQ 

^i! 

< 

(U    "1 

«"§                     §                    i                    1 

0    '    '    '    'd    '    '    '    '0'    '    ' 

0                 0                0 

'  '0  '  '  '  'd  '  •  '  '0' 

0            0            ^ 

H 
UJ 

< 

s  °- 

(0    wi- 
XM  ^^ 

(0  s-o 

0  c 

0 

sz 

•2                 ;+                « 

c.               i:               0 

y. 

< 

0 

y. 

1             S|||^3|S-2| 

i  1   2   i  ■=  <S  -5    . 1  f  =  5  •= 
™             ^  -a  .£  X  .'S  g  £  .2  .S  -5" 

i  ^ 
it 

ni 
III 

.?  ?i-e 

i  1 

an       u 

i     S 

.S  'bi      j;  2 

M.ii 

■0   =   S     .  V 
=  £  <;  0  * 

74 


co-o                    O                   P                   o                    O                  O                    o                  <J 
ooooco                 oo-=y 

C5                     CD                     N.                      o                     ''".■                      -^                       '."-CI                      ^                     CD 

1       f      1      1       .       1       1       1      1      .      1      1       1      1       1       1       1      1       1  ^      1       1       '       1       1        1       1      1      1       1       ]       1       r       1       ,      1       ,       1       1       ,        ] 1       . 

A 

J 

JAPAN 

CHINESE 
EMPIRE 

INDIA 

PARTHIAN 
EMPIRE 

ARABIA 
U 

cr 

CL 

Z 

Ul 

z 
< 

0 

cr: 

BRITAIN 

1  N  a» 

■r     N 

.       .    Wa-                      1                           1                           ,                         y      -                  , 

CHINESE               STATE      S                      CHINESE       EMPIRE 

:'           1           1           1           1           1           1           1           1           r 

1       N       D 

1          A 

i     N 

D    1     A 

■ 

E      D 

1 

■.  1 

1 

M 

E      S 

M  ED  lA  &. 
PERSIA 

P  E  R5  1  A 

PARTHIAN 
UJ                      EMPIRE 

1 

""   ■ 

H       A  RTiCJ 

EGYPT 

< 

EGYPT-          C 

y                       n       UNO 

:   c 

CR      TM 

Y     P    T 

£        PTOLS.MIES 

^ 



.  I\       1       M 

wuun        ur       juun  n  , 

Q^^' 

oc 

;■>.■ 

Ui 

K  1  NOD 

♦llM«I^M;Hm 

r 

1 

'          r  ^i 

1    « 

BABYLON 

1  A 

z 
< 

'IRE 

0  N  1  < 

1  RE 

(0 

Q. 

1 

1 

1 

A 

> 
to 

UJ 

Ui 

0  —  "» 

■1. 

.... 

Ql 

1   U 

. 

2^ 

""    1 

t      \y 

n      1 

SYRIAN 

EMPIR 

TMt 

UCtD/Evi^ 

5    Y 

R      1 

A         < 

< 

a 

<                   or 

0    1    A 

&. 

L  Y  D 

1    A 

^1 

<l 

CR 

1 

■ 

1;                      -                MACEDON 

ACEDON 

1               1 

■  - 

HHI 

^ 

G 

REE 

K           S 

.TATE   S 

EEK  ST 

ATES 

1 

1               1 

1 

Mm^'         LATINS 

,     R     0     M      E 

ROMAN 
SUPREMACY                   < 

1                1 

1               1 

m^              E     T     R      U 

S     C      A      N     S 

r 
L 

^7J 

^ 

z 

■'\"^f5i^^ 

aj^v^k-^rav^ 

"^ 

r" 

-  '^H 

CAUL 

I                1 

D     B 

,;,.,-,,V 

SPA 

1  N                 0 



Hi 

'■' —  '■-■_  - 

1 

■ 

CART     HA     0 

1 

e 

c 

AELS 

&LKYM 

R.9HE  mZ3EI 

'  •   '   'c    ■   '  '   'o'   '    '  '   'd   '   '   •   'd   '   '   '   'o'   '   '  '   'd   ■    '   '   'd   '   '  '   'o'   •    '   '   'o'    '    '   '  /j 

oo                 ooo                ooo                 O- 

0)CD                      l-»Oift                      rj-                     n                     Oi                      ^CO 

975  B.C.  Division  of  the  Hebrew  king- 
dom into  Judah  and  Israel  after  the 
death  of  Solomon. 

Growth  of  the  Hellenic  States. 

The  age  of  Homer. 

850  B.C.     Foundation  of  Carthage. 
Beginnings  of  the  Latin  and  Etruscan 
peoples. 

1 

Assyrian  conquest  of  Babylon,    Syria, 
and  Israel. 
753  B.C.     The  foundation  of  Rome. 
Rapid  spread  of  the  Greek  Colonies. 

Beginnings  of  the  Macedonian  kingdom. 
Rise  of  Media.                                               j 
Beginnings  of  Japanese  history.                 1 
Decline   of    Assyria,   fall  of    Nineveh, 
and    establishment   of    new    Babyl  nian 
Empire.                                                              1 

Cyrus,      King     of     Persia,      conquers 
Media,  establishes  his  empire  over  Lydia. 
Assyria,    and  Babylonia  (538  B.C.).     His 
son  Cambyses  concjuers  Egypt,  525  B.C. 

The  Greek  States  revolt  against  Persia 
and  are  triumphant.                                          1 

Egypt  regains  independence.                   1 

Steady  growth  of  Roman  ascendancy 
in  Italy. 

Struggle  between  Athens  and  Sparta. 

Conquests  of  Alexander  the  Great  (334- 
322    B.C.).     He  conquers  Persia  ,  masters 
Egypt,  and  invades  India.     At  his  death 
his  empire  is  divided  ;    Egypt  falls  under 
the  Ptolemies,  Syria  under  the  Seleucida;. 

Babylon  absorbed  by  Parthian  Empire. 
Carthage  dominates  Spain. 
Wars    between    Rome    and  Carthage. 
Overthrow  of  Carthage  (202  B.C.) 

Judea  attains  independence  under  the 
Maccabees. 

Growing  power  of  Rome.  Macedon  a 
Roman  province;  Egypt  and  Syria  made 
Roman  protectorates.  The  Greek  States 
are  absorbed  into  province  of  Macedon.      1 

C.fsar  conquers  Gaul  and  lands  in 
Brit.iin. 

Egypt  becomes  a  Roman  province. 

Augustus  Caesar.  Establishment  of  the 
Roin.m  Empire. 

75 


OTTOMAN  TURKS 


BYZANTINE         EMPIRE 


T      U      R      ..      .      , 

(otto  man) 
^    M    P    I     RE 


P    O    R   T    U    G 


CASTILE 


JAPAN 


BRITISH 
INDIAN 
EMPIRE 

AFGHArt- 
I  STAN 

PERSIA 
ARABIA 
EGYPT 


[RUSSIAN 
EMPIRE 

ITALY 


GERMAN 
EMPIRE 


HOLLAND 
SWITZER- 


SOUTH 
^AMERICAN 


!               1 

J_ 

' 

1 

s 

t.   STAT  ELS 

SPAIN 
MEXICO 
MOROCCO 

.          A       R 

RJKh] 

■M 

Sb 

.   ■-•■   ■"• 

PAIN 

n7^ 

N 

r        ^ 

■■■«- 

J 

G 

R 

A     N     A     D    A      ito^v.                 .                              MEXK 

*i 

ISH        DOMir 

JION 

1 

1                   1                   1                   I               "1                   1 

M 

0 

SLEM 

STATES      OF      N.AFRICA 

■ 

_ 

1                 1                 1                1                 1 

E    N   C   L 

AND 

E     N 

C 

LAND 

GREAT 
BRITAIN 

& 
IRELAND 

UNITED 

1 

1 
ELAN 

D 

GREAT 
BRITAIN 

1 

SCO 

T 

L 

AND 

r 

' 

:^ 

STATES 
DENMARK 
NORWAY 
SWEDEN 

D 

E 

..N  M   A 

R 

K                                 D    E    N  M  A   F 

\    K 

1-        1         I         1 

■ 

N     0     R    W 

. ,.-... 

N 

0    R    W 

A  Y 

^■::*' 

f 

P— ... 

unni^^XVnnmnnp 

!wn3.'r 

S^rlBL-^ 

S^^ 

*■              I 

l-I-I-T-I              .      1      .      'c^ 

■  '  '   'o'  ' 

• 

0 

■    ■    •    'C 

>'    ■ 

■   •   'o-    ■   •   ■  -o-    •   •   ■   -cy 

...   .J    ...   .^ 

o                 o 

o 

c 

C 

00000 

o                  S 

<M 

c: 

r 

in                0                t-                00                O) 

»-l                   »-< 

.^                         »-■                         »-^                        r^                         ^* 

of  the 
r  of  the 
nst   the 
ers,  and 

nmedan 
ablish  a 

lib     <sl 

3 

ti 

C     If. 

s  § 
i5x 

0. 
c 

i  'i 

c'o  j  S  = 
'=  3  ol  =  a, 

<1  0  53 

Thirty 
English 
recovers 

;r.    Ri^e 
f  Pol.uid 
Austria. 
Empire. 
1    North 
d  States. 

apoleon. 

Estab- 
ly   inde- 

Balk.in 
undation 

Z    „i   l-T-.    0 

ntegration  of  the  Empir 
s,  and  rise  in  Asia   Min 
Turks,    making  war  ag 
tine  Empire  and  the  Crusa 
ering  Egypt. 

a    is    invaded    by    Moh 
n  rulers,  who  eventually  e 
y  at  Delhi. 

Kingdoms  of  Hungary, 
oland,  converted  to  Chris 
nth  century,  come  into  i 
nence. 

Kings  of  Castile,  N.ivarre 
ortugal  war  against  the  M 

248I  are  restricted  to  Grai 

.2 

> 

B  "n 

a 

1 

0  -o 

2 « 

•0   c 

C     f3 

£  g  > 

u 

3 

■?  '^'0 
pi 

SMS 

II! 

eiiiiaand  Hungary  united  t 
and    Portugal   take   pos^ 

ew  World.  Mogul  Emp 
in   Hindostan.     The    Re 

to  revolt   of  the   Netherl 

;  Spain  absorbs  Portugal. 

on  of  English  and  Scottis 
followed  by  legislative  un 

jtion    of    Germany    in    tl 
War.      Establishment   0 

les  in  America.     Portuga 

endence. 

in  becomes  a  Bourbon  Vo\ 
bsia  and  Prussia.    Partition 
en    Russia,    Prussia    and 
er  disintegration  of  Germ; 
1    dominion    in    India    a 
ca.  Independence  of  Unit 

nee  predominant   under 
of  South  American  State 
;nt   of    British    India.      I 

lit.     Egypt,    Greece,    an 
freed   from   Turkey.     K 

rman  Empire. 

1 
1 

:5a=  §  B-"?  2  S 

«  a.  2  ■=  ^  i  ^. 

^  a 

■; 

x" 

^.Sis-i 

■3  "    "S  •^  - 

'H  7^  =  £  S  =■ 

i«|lll 

2  u  £  -5 .»;  o 

QS:oNg=^S 

H-a   u  5  H-c  -1 

'/I 

i2  "  S 

H  ^H  u  lA  = 

«ai|'^a 

33|So-S 

i^-^-SgiH^ 

U  (fl  =3   S       ■<  S 

S£  0.      ii 

U 

0  > 

1      -       T5 

«■£  =  Jii« 

iQ>u.= 

Oil  !!.«•< 

aS  a-tno 

■" 

77 


CONTEMPORARY     FIGURES     IN     HISTORY 

TIME 
B.C. 

500 

India              China 

Persia            Greece 

Rome 

Judah 

Egypt 

Hacedon 

TiMi-; 
B.C. 

liuddha          !  Confucius 

Darius 

/Esrhylus 

Tarquin  the   '  Haggai 

500 

Xerxes 

Themistocles 

Proud 

Zethariah 

450 

Artaxerxes 

Socrates 
Plato 
'  Pericles 
Herodotus 
Thucydides 
Sophocles 

Nehemiah 
Ezra 

450 

400 

Euripides 

400 

350 

Aristotle 
Demosthenes 

[baeus 

Philip 
Alexander 

350 

200 

Hannibal 

Judas  Macca- 

200 

50 

Julius  Caesar 
Cicero 

Cleopatra 

50 

Jesus 

Augustus 

John  the 

Jesus 

Christ 

Tiberius 
Horace 

[  Baptist 

Christ 

i 

Virtjil,  Livy 

A.D. 

Britain 

France 

Germany 

Switzerland 

Rome,  Italy 

Seneca 

Spain 

Netherlands 

Africa  &  East   A.D. 

1 

50 

Boadicea 

Josephus 

50 

St.  Paul 

300 

Constantine 

Alhanasius 

300 

400 

Alaric 

Augustine 

400 

600 

Chas.  M  artel 

Mahomet 

600 

700 

Hede 

tRaschid 

700 

800 

lioo 

Alfred 

Charlemagne 

Hannin-al- 

800 

The  Cid 

Omar  Khay- 

IIOO 

1200 

St.  Francis 

yam  (Persia) 

1200 

1300 

Chaucer 

William  Tell 

Aquinas 
Dante 

Tamerlane 

1300 

1350 

Wycliffe 

Froissart 

Arnold  von 
Winkelried 

Petrarch 
Boccaccio 

Hafiz  (Persia) 

1350 

1450 

Caxton 

Da  Vinci 

■450 

1500 

Knox 
Latimer 

Rabelais 

Luther 
Copernicus 

Calvin 

Columbus 
.Savonarola 

IgnatiusLoyola 
St.  Theresa 

Erasmus 

1500 

Machiaveili 

Ferdnd.  &  Isabella 

Cortez 

Russia 

I5SO 

PhilipSidney 

Montaigne 

Cellini 

Alva 

William  the 

Ivan  the 

iSSo 

Spenser 

Scaliger 

Tasso 

[Silent 

[Terrible 

1600 

Shakespeare 
Raleigh 
Bacon 
Jonson 

Corneille 
Richelieu 
Descartes 

Kepler 

Galileo 

Cervantes 
Scandinavia 

Gustavus  Adol- 
phus 

Rubens 

Van  Dyck 
Grotius 

1600 

1650 

Cromwell 

Pascal 

Peter  the  Gt. 

1650 

Milton 

Racine 

Leibnitz 

Spinoza 

[&  Catherine 

Bunyan 

Moliere 

Dryden 

F^n^lon 

Locke 

Rochefoucauld 

Hobbes 

Louis  XIV. 

1700 

Swift 
Steele 
Addison 
Walpole 

Handel 

Holberg 

America 

1700 

1750 

Chatham 

FredktheGi 

Rousseau 

Franklin 

«7SO 

Burke 

Voltaire 

(Joethe 

Gessner 

W.-ishington 

Pitt  and  Fox 

Lavoisier 

Schiller 

Pestalozzi 

Wesley 

Napoleon 

Haydn 

Burns 

Mozart 

Goldsmith 

Kant 

Sheridan 

Dr.  Johnson 

Coleridge 

Klaxmaii 

Reynolds 
Gainsboro'gh 

Nelson 

Wellington 

1800 

Faraday 

Scott 

Byron 

Keats 

Shelley 

Wordsworth 

Lamb 

Hegel 
Beethoven 

Tegner 
Thorwaldsen 

1800 

1825 

Gladstone 

Balzac 

Wagner 

Garibaldi 

HansAndersen 

Irving 

1825 

Macaulay 

Dumas 

Heine 

Mazzini 

Runeberg 

Emerson 

Oisraeli 

Victor  Hugo 

P.ismarck 

C.ivour 

Wergeland 

Longfellow 

Landseer 

Georges  Sand 

Moltke 

Victor  F.m- 

Welhaven 

Whittier 

Mill 

Lessens 

P.utisen 

manucl 

Ibsen 

Lowell 

Livingstone 

Napoleon  3 

William  I. 

Bjornson 

Holmes 

Ruskin 

Gambetia 

Lincoln 

Uickens 

Turgenieff 

Carlyle 

Thackeray 

Tolstoy 

Browning 

Tennyson 

iJarwin 

Hungary 

Huxley 

Kossuth 

1000       * 

1000 

7^ 


MAKIN^K^Jp-^ffg^sEARTH 


AND 


OF  MAN 


THE   BEGINNING  OF  THE   EARTH 


BY    PROFESSOR    SOLLAS 


HTHE  origin  of  our  planet  is  a  problem 
•'■  which  has  appealed  to  the  intellect 
of  thoughtful  men  from  the  most  remote 
times,  and  the  earliest  recorded  specula- 
tions concerning  it — those  of  the  Mosaic 
cosmogony — possess  a  peculiar  interest, 
since  they  embody  the  views  of  the  ancient 
Chaldeans,  who  were  not  only  systematic 
observers  of  the  heavens,  but  made  prac- 
tical use  of  their  results. 

The  Mosaic  cosmogony  is  not  unworthy 

of  the  great  people  among  whom  it  took 

.     .         its  rise ;   it  recognises  the  fact 

eginnmg     ^^^^^  ^j^^  earth  had  a  history  an- 

of  a  Famous   ,         j.-.i,         i  .      c 

^.  tecedent  to  the  advent  of  man, 

and  its  account  of  the  order  of 
events  in  this  history  is  not  only  remarkable 
as  a  feat  of  a  priori  reasoning,  but  accords 
in  some  respects  with  the  results  achieved 
after  much  labour  by  modern  science. 

It  was  not  until  the  middle  of  the 
eighteenth  century  that  the  reign  of 
evolution  began,  and  attempts  were  made 
to  trace  the  history  of  a  planetary 
system  from  its  source  in  a  primeval 
nebula  on  purely  mechanical  grounds. 
Swedenborg  (1735)  was  the  pioneer  in  this 
direction,  then  came  Thomas  Wright  (1750) 
of  Durham,  whose  work  furnished  inspira- 
tion to  Emanuel  Kant  (1755),  and  led  him 
to  construct  a  consistent  scheme  of  the 
Universe.  The  last  of  this  group  of 
cosmic  philosophers  is  Laplace  (1796), 
whose  admirable  description  of  the  evolu- 
tion of  the  solar  system  was  arrived  at 
independently,  and  without  knowledge  of 
the  previous  work  of  Kant. 

Laplace  assumed  as  his  starting-point 
tlie  existence  of  a  nebula  formed  of  in- 
candescent   gas,    and    extending    beyond 


the  limits  of  the  outermost  planet  of  our 
system.  It  was  in  rotation  about  a 
central  axis,  and  possessed  in  consequence 
a  disc-like  or  lenticular  form.  Radiating 
its  heat  away  in  all  directions  through 
surrounding  space,  it  grew  contmually 
colder,  and  in  cooling  diminished  in  bulk. 
As  a  consequence  of  this  contraction  its 
rate  of  rotation  increased,  till  at  length  the 
centrifugal  force  of  the  outermost  part 
became  so  great  that  this  could  no  longer 
continue  to  follow  the  contracting  mass 
within,  and  thus  remained  behind  as  a 
great  rotating  ring.  The  continued  con- 
traction of  the  internal  mass,  and  the  re- 
sulting increase  in  the  velocity  of  rotation, 
again  brought  about  the  same  condition 
of  things,  and  a  fresh  ring  was  left  behind. 
This  process  was  repeated  time  after 
time,  till  as  many  rings  were  formed  as  there 
are  planets  in  the  solar  system  ;  the  central 
mass  which  survived  within  the  innermost 
ring  conden.sed  to  form  the  sun.  The 
rings  were  highly  unstable — that  is  to 
say,  a  slight  disturbing  force  was  sufhcient 
to  destroy  their  continuity  ;  they  broke 
across  and  rolled  up  into  great  nebulous 
globes,  which  revolved  round  the  sun  in 
the  same  direction  as  the  original  nebula, 
and  rotated  on  their  axes  in  the  same  direc- 
tion as  that  in  which  they  re- 
volved. Most  of  them  repeated 
the  behaviour  of  the  original 
nebulae,  leaving  behind  rings  as 
they  contracted,  and  these  rings  either 
rolled  up  to  form  moons  or  satellites,  or, 
in  the  solitary  instance  of  Saturn's  rings, 
retained  their  annular  form.  The  rings 
are  now  known  to  consist  of  a  multitude  of 
solid  bodies,  as  proved  by  Clerk-Maxwell. 

79 


Cooling 
of  the 
Mebula 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


By  this  hypothesis,  so  beautiful  in  its 
simphcity,  an  explanation  was  afforded 
embracing  all  the  more  important  facts 
of  our  system  ;  the  revolution  of  all  the 
planets  in  nearly  circular  orbits  and  in  the 
same  direction  as  that  in  which  the  sun 
rotates,  and  the  revolution  of  their 
satellites,  also  in  circular  orbits  and  in 
the  same  direction  as  their  primaries ; 
the    comparatively    high    tem- 

^  ^'""  perature  and  consequent  low 
pera  ure  o    (jgj^j^j^y   ^f  ^j^g   larger    planets 

the  Earth  ,  ,  J-  i,'^  ^      .    , 

and  the  sun,  as  well  as  a  variety 
of  other  phenomena,  all  seem  to  follow 
naturally  from  it.  The  fundamental  as- 
sumption seems  to  be  in  harmony  with  a 
number  of  known  facts.  Thus  in  the  case 
of  our  own  planet  the  volcanoes  distributed 
around  the  margins  of  the  oceans,  and  the 
hot  springs  scattered  irregularly  over  the 
whole  terrestrial  surface,  suggest  that  great 
stores  of  heat  exist  beneath  our  feet,  a 
presumption  which  finds  confirmation  in 
the  fact  that  whenever  we  descend  to- 
wards the  interior  of  the  earth,  as  in 
deep  mines  or  wells,  the  temperature 
continues  steadily  to  rise  after  we  have 
passed  a  depth  below  which  seasonal  and 
diurnal  changes  of  temperature  cease  to  be 
felt,  the  rise  being  in  some  cases  as  much 
as  3  deg.  for  loo  ft.,  in  others  only  i  deg. 
for  the  same  distance,  but  on  the  average 
I  deg.  for  60  ft.  or  70  ft.  If  this  increase 
of  temperature  continues  down  to  great 
dej)ths,  and  there  seems  to  be  no  reason 
why  it  should  not,  then  a  jwint  will  be 
reached,  say,  at  thirty  or  forty  miles  down, 
where  the  interior  will  attain  a  white  heat. 
Thus  the  earth  might  be  regarded  as  a 
white  hot  body  surrounded  with  a  film  of 
rock  growing  continually  cooler  towards  the 
surface.  But  such  a  hot  body  suspended 
in  space  must  be  cooling,  just  as  all  bodies 
which  are  hotter  than  their  surroundings. 
It  is  cooler  to-day  than  it  was  yesterday, 
or — what  is  the  same  thing — it  was  hotter 
yesterday  than  it  is  to-day,  and  so  of 
all  previous  yesterdays.  And  thus  as  we 
travel  backwards  in  time  we 
perceive  that  the  earth  will  be 
growing  hotter,  the  level  of 
white  heat  will  be  mount- 
ing upwards  towards  the  surface,  and 
will  at  last  reach  it,  so  that  the  earth, 
instead  of  being,  as  it  now  is,  a  dark  l)f)dy 
shining  only  with  the  reHected  light  of  the 
sun,  will  be  self-luminous,  a  tiny  star  of 
a  magnitude  so  diminutive  as  to  have 
awakened  resentment  on  the  part  of  some 

80 


The 

Earth  as 
a  Star 


terrestrial  inhabitants,  who  have  regarded 
it  as  disproportionate  to  their  dignity.  But 
we  cannot  arrest  imagination  at  this  stage  ; 
our  thought  still  extends  its  retrospective 
glance  into  the  abyss  of  past  time,  and  we 
perceive  the  earth  still  growing  hotter, 
till  its  temperature  transcends  those 
limits  at  which  it  can  exist  in  the  solid 
state.  It  becomes  molten — nay,  mqre,  it 
becomes  gaseous,  and  thus  resumes  the 
nebular  state  from  which  it  sprang. 
Precisely  the  same  argument  apj)lies 
to  the  sun  ;  our  mighty  luminary  is  also 
a  cooling  body,  and  if  we  could  restore  to 
it  the  heat  which  it  has  lost  in  the  course 
of  past  aeons  it  would  resume  a  completely 
gaseous  state.  Modified  in  one  way  or 
another,  this  chain  of  reasoning  seemed 
irrefragable  in  those  happy  days  which  pre- 
ceded the  discovery  of  radium. 

The  question  may  be  considered  from 
another  point  of  view.  On  searching  the 
heavens  we  find  that  many  of  the  stages 
which  are  assumed  in  Laplace's  hypo- 
thesis are  still  represented  by  actual 
existences.  There  are,  to  begin  with, 
those  immense  diffused  nebulse,  almost 
incapable  of  definition,  which  are  proved, 
on  spectroscopic  examination, 
niverse       ^^    emit    that    kind    of    light 

_*  , '".         which  is  characteristic  of  glow- 
Evolution  r  xi  J 
mg  gas  ;   from  these  we  pass  to 

others  which  are  resolvable  by  the  telescope 
into  a  central  and  more  condensed  nucleus, 
with  two  mighty  nebulous  arms  whirled 
round  in  a  spiral,  and  bearing  more  con- 
densed masses  in  their  midst  ;  even  ring 
nebulae  are  known  to  exist ;  and,  finally, 
there  are  nebulous  halos  which  surround 
some  of  the  stars.  Then  we  come  to  the 
stars  themselves,  which  are  suns  of  various 
degrees  of  magnitude,  some  immensely 
larger  than  our  own  luminary,  and  these 
are  evidently  in  various  stages  of  existence. 
Some  are  blue,  and  afford  evidence  of  a 
higher  temjierature  than  that  of  our  sun  ; 
others  are  yellow,  and  make  a  nearer 
approach  to  the  solar  temjierature  ;  while, 
again,  others  are  red,  and  certainly  colder. 
These,  in  conjunction  with  other  con- 
siderations, lead  to  the  conviction  that 
the  universe  is  in  a  state  of  evolution,  and 
that  the  solar  system  at  one  time  existed 
in  a  nebular  state.  But  whether  La- 
))]ace's  description  of  the  series  of  events 
through  which  the  original  nebula  passed 
is  the  true  one  or  not  is  a  very  different 
matter ;  it  presents  so  many  difficulties 
that  scarcely  any  student  now  supports  it. 


Or,  like  the  nebula  of  Cygrii,  with  the  central  sun  well 
formed  and  the  gaseous  ring  far  removed,  the  earth  would 
begin  to  shape,  and  the  ring  would  roll  up  to  form  the  moon. 


In  the  beginning,  it  is  supposed  that  the  earth  was 
part  of  a  vast  nebula  of  gaseous  matter  and  meteo- 
rites, resembling  the  nebula  of  Argo,  illustrated  above. 


Jupiter,  which  is  in  a  molten  state,  wreathed  in  thick 
vapour,  with  the  "great  red  spot"  indicating  the  begin- 
ning of  the  solidifying  process,  shows  what  the  earth 
was  like  before  it  assumed  its  present  solid  condition. 


Later,  as  the  cooling  process  advanced,  the  nebula  assumed 
a  rotatory  movement  in  the  form  of  a  spiral.  The  nebula 
of  Andromeda   affords   an   excellent  illustration  of  this. 


Another  stage  would  be  as  in  the  annular  nebula  of  Aqua-        This  shows  the  earth  and  the  moon  in  their  relative  sizes  ; 

ns,  the  mass  forming  into  a  ball  with  outer  ring  attached.        while  the  diagram  below  it  illustrates  the  distance  apart. 

HOW  THE  HEAVENS  TELL  THE  STORY  OF  THE  ORIGIN  OF  THE  EARTH 

6  8l 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


A  fundamental  difficulty  is  the  extreme 

tenuity    of    the    gas    which    is    assumed 

to  have  formed  the  planetary   rings.      A 

,  ,       second    difficulty,    which    has 

ap  ace  s      \^QQ^  emi:)hasised  by  Professors 

Ak     J       J   Chamberlin    and    Moulton,    is 
Abandoned    ,         ,  .         j      ■         ,i 

to  be  found  m  the  com- 
paratively small  amount  of  rotational 
energy  which  the  system  at  present 
possesses,  for  this  is  less  than  oj^  of 
that  which,  on  the  most  favourable 
assumption,  must  have  been  contained 
within  the  original  nebula.  Less  funda- 
mental, but  equally  fatal,  is  the  fact  that 
one  of  the  satellites  of  Saturn  revolves 
round  its  primary  in  a  direction  opposed  to 
that  of  the  rotation  of  the  planet  itself. 
[Recently  Mr.  Stratton,  following  out  a  sug- 
gestion of  Professor  W.  H.  Pickering,  has 
shown  that  this  is  quite  consistent,  and, 
indeed,  is  a  natural  deduction  from  La- 
place's hypothesis.]  Hence  for  these  and 
other  reasons  we  are  reluctantly  compelled 
to  abandon  an  hypothesis  which  for  over 
a  century  has  exercised  an  influence  on 
oui  conception  of  the  cosmos  not  less 
profound,  penetrating,  and  far-reaching 
than  that  of  the  famous  Darwinian 
doctrine  of  natural  selection,  now  on 
its  trial. 

At  present,  unanimity  of  opinion,  even 
on  questions  of  the  most  primary  kinrl, 
is  far  to  seek.  Philosoi)hers  are  not  even 
agreed  as  to  the  constitution  of  the  nebuhe. 
It  is  questioned  whether  even  those  least 
resolvable  and  most  diffused  forms  which 
give  bright  line  spectra  really  consist  of 
masses  of  incandescent  gas.  Many  ob- 
servers, among  them  Sir  Norman  Lockyer, 
now  maintain  that  they  are  formed 
of  swarms  of  meteorites,  which,  moving 
with  prodigious  velocity,  meet  in  frequent 
collision,    and    by    their    impact    evolve 

sufficient  heat  to  become  self- 

^  luminous.     Others,  again,  like 

N7bulL?       ^^^^'   distinguished    investigator 

Arrhcnius,  while  admitting 
the  gaseous  nature  of  these  nebuke,  deny 
that  they  are  incandescent,  and  assert 
that  their  temperature  is  not  much 
above  that  of  surrounding  space.  Their 
exterior  parts  consist  of  the  lighter 
gases  in  a  highly  rarefied  state,  and 
minute  particles  of  negative  electricity, 
which  are  always  careering  through 
space,  on  penetrating  these  gases  ])ro- 
duce  a  luminous  discharge.  A  nebula 
composed  of  swarms  of  meteorites  would, 
as  Sir  George  Darwin  has  shown,  behave 

83 


very  much  in  the  same  way  as  one  com- 
posed of  gas,  and  if  in  rotation  would 
rotate  as  a  solid  mass.  The  meteorites 
would  stand  in  the  same  relation  to 
the  nebula  as  molecules  to  a  gas,  and 
thus  the  question  of  the  constitution 
of  the  nebula,  although  of  great  in- 
terest in  itself,  becomes  of  subsidiary 
importance  in  tracing  its  subsequent 
history. 

One  of  the  latest  attempts  to  frame  a 
nebular  hypothesis  is  that  of  Professor 
J.  H.  Jeans.  His  reasoning  is  of  a  highly 
mathematical  character,  and  his  con- 
clusions are  expressed  in  the  most  general 
terms.  Starting  with  a  spherical  nebula 
of  gas  or  meteorites  endowed  with  a 
small  amount  of  rotation,  he  shows  that 
as  it  cools  or  loses  energy  the  temperature 
of  the  interior  will  not  fall  continuously 
in  precise  correspondence  with  the  cooling 
of  the  outer  parts,  and  this  "  lag"  of  the 
interior  temperature  will  bring  about  a 
tendency  to  instability.  The  contraction 
of  the  nebula  due  to  cooling  will  increase 
g.      .  the  velocity  of    rotation,   and 

f  th"*^        ^^^^  again  will  tend  to   insta- 
p.  bility.    As  a  result  of  the  insta- 

bility so  produced  the  nebula 
will  change  its  form,  and  become  more 
or  less  pear-shaped.  The  narrow  end  of 
the  pear  will  then  separate  from  the 
body  and  assume  an  indejiendent  existence 
as  a  primitive  planet.  This  process  will 
recur  again  and  again  till  the  nebula  is 
resolved  into  a  sun  with  its  attendant 
planets.  The  planets,  existing  at  first 
as  gaseous  masses  or  quasi-gaseous  masses, 
will  be  liable  to  the  same  kind  of  trans- 
formation, and  may  thus  bud  off  moons 
or  satellites. 

If  the  nebula  were  not  in  rapid  rotation, 
a  slight  disturbing  cause,  acting  at  the 
critical  moment  when  a  planet  was  being 
ejected,  might  determine  the  inclination 
of  the  planet's  orbit,  which  might  thus 
be  very  oblique  to  the  equatorial  plane 
of  the  nebula.  Thus  the  hypothesis  is  not 
open  to  one  of  the  objections  which  have 
been  urged  against  that  of  Laplace — 
namely,  that  the  orbits  of  some  of  the 
planets  in  the  solar  system  are  inclined 
at  a  large  angle  with  the  plane  of  the 
sun's  equator. 

Jeans  mentions  two  disturbing  causes 
in  particular  which  might  easily  arise — 
one  the  penetration  of  the  nebula  by  a 
wandering  meteorite,  which  might  pre- 
cipitate  an   event   already   on   the   verge 


This  illustrates  Laplace's  theory,  which  conceived  of  a  vast  nebula  filling  the  whole  space  of  the  solar 
system  and  rotating  around  a  central  axis.  The  outer  and  thinner  part  had  much  greater  move- 
ment than  the  denser  central  mass,  finally  being  thrown  off  as  a  ring,  which  in  turn  rolled  up  into 
a  ball,  still  following  the  same  course  as  the  ring  had  followed.  Thus  the  earth  broke  off  from  the 
sun     and     the     moon     from     the     earth.         The     theory     is,     however,     no     longer     credited     by    scientists. 


The  pear-shaped  nebula  is  the  theory  of  a  young  English  mathematician.  Professor  J.  H.  Jeans.  Starting  with  a 
spherical  nebula,  he  argues  that  in  cooling  it  will  assume  the  form  illustrated  above,  and  that  the  smaller  part 
will  separate   and   form   a   satellite  rotating  independently  but    within   a  distance  influenced  by  the  parent  mass. 


The  spiral  nebula  in  Canes  Venatici,  a   revolving    mass   of  gas   or  meteorites,  supplies,  according  to  the  nebular 

hypothesis  of  Messrs.  Chamberlin   and    Moulton,  an  excellent  example  of  how  the  earth   and   moon  were  formed. 

We  may  reasonably  imagine  the  smaller  spiral  to  represent  the  moon  in  the  act  of  being  thrown  off  by  the  earth. 

THREE  FAMOUS  THEORIES  OF  THE  BEGINNING  OF  THE  EARTH 


63 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


of  happening,  and  simultaneously  deter- 
mine both  the  birth  of  a  planet  and  thr; 
obliquity  of  its  orbit ;  the  second,  the 
presence  of  some  distant  mass,  such  as 
a  star,  which,  by  raising  a  quasi-tide  in 
the   nebula,   would   give    the   final   touch 

-.  ,        required  to  overturn  its  equi- 

neavenly        i-i     •  ti        •    n  1 

_     .      .        librmm.       Ihe  mfluence    of   a 

^  ,,.  .  distant  body,  such  as  a  passing 

Collision  ,  ,  ■{'  1     J     1 

star,    has     been     mvoked    by 

Moulton  in  another  version  of  the  nebular 

hypothesis.     In  conjunction  with  Cham- 

berlin,  he  calls   special   attention   to   the 

spiral    nebulae,    which    are    by    far    the 

commonest  kind,  as  presenting  the  closest 

approach  to  the  conditions  which  obtain 

when   planets   are   actually   in   course   of 

formation.    Chamberlin  and  Moulton  enter 

on   a   detailed    account    of    the    manner 

in   which    they  suppose    the    planets    to 

have  grown  by  the  gradual  accretion  of 

meteoric    masses    as     these    encountered 

each     other    while     moving     in     various 

elliptical  orbits. 

At  present  it  would  seem  impossible  to 
speak  with  certainty  as  to  the  precise 
history  of  the  solar  system.  Meanwhile, 
we  may  console  ourselves  with  the  closing 
words  of  Professor  Jeans'  paper,  to  the 
effect  that  "  no  difficulty  need  be  ex- 
perienced in  referring  existing  planetary 
systems  to  a  nebulous  or  meteoric  origin 
on  the. ground  that  the  configurations  of 
these  systems  are  not  such  as  could  have 
originated  out  of  a  rotating  mass  of 
liquid." 

An  investigation  by  Sir  George  Darwin, 
which  has  furnished  inspiration  to  such 
hyjjotheses  as  that  of  Jeans,  brings  us 
nearer  the  immediate  subject  of  this  essay, 
since  it  treats  of  one  of  the  last  acts  in 
the  great  drama  of  planetary  existence, 
and  attemj^ts  to  derive  the  earth  and 
moon  from  a  common  origin  in  a  single 
rotating  sphere. 

It  is  well  known  that,  owing  to  the 
M/i.   .i    r»      frictional   effects  produced   bv 

Why  the  Day,,      ,•  ,        ,,  .  i/ •     i     •  ■^ 

.  _  .  '  the  tides  the  earth  is  being  gra- 
Lon  er  dually  slowed  down.as  it  rotates 

upon  its  axis.  Thus  the  day 
is  constantly  getting  longer,  so  that  in  a 
few  millions  of  years  it  will  have  increased 
in  length  from  twenty-four  to  twenty-five 
hours.  On  the  other  hand,  in  jmst  time 
it  must  have  been  shorter  than  at  present  : 
a  few  millions  of  years  ago  it  was  only 
twenty-three  hours  in  length,  and  many 
millions  of  years  earlier  it  was  still  less, 
only  some  five  hours  or  so.     At  that  time 

84 


the  earth  was  hotter  than  it  is  now,  less 
rigid,  more  yielding,  and,  owing  to  its 
rapid  rotation,  less  stable.  The  action  on 
the  moon  of  the  tides  produced  in  it  by  the 
earth  is  similar,  and  the  rotation  of  the 
moon  has  been  so  far  diminished  by  them 
that  its  day  has  become  as  long  as  the 
month — i.e.,  our  satellite  only  turns 
once  round  on  its  axis  in  the  time  that  it 
takes  to  revolve  once  round  the  earth  ; 
it  is  for  this  reason  that  our  satellite 
keeps  always  the  same  face  turned  to- 
wards us. 

The  retardation  of  the  earth  in  its 
rotation  has,  however,  a  very  remarkable 
effect  on  the  revolution  of  the  moon  ;  it 
involves — by  the  principle  of  the  con- 
servation of  moment  of  momentum — a 
corresponding  acceleration  of  the  moon 
in  its  orbit,  and,  as  a  consequence  of  this, 
an  enlargement  of  this  orbit — that  is, 
the  moon  is  pushed  away  from  us,  as  it 
were,  and  thus  becomes  more  remote. 
But  if  so,  the  moon  must  have  been  nearer 
to  us  in  times  past.  It  is  possible  to  trace 
the  approach  of  the  moon  to  the  earth 
as  we  go  backwards  in  time  till  the  dis- 
tance  between  them  was  only 

c     oon     ^^^  ^^^  ^  Y^^if  terrestrial  radii 

^  c  1.  instead  of  the  sixty  radii  which 
Our  Sphere  .        .t_  at    ^i 

now  separate  them.  Mathe- 
matics do  not  take  us  farther  back  than 
this.  But  it  is  difficult  to  resist  the 
suggestion  that  in  the  immediately  pre- 
ceding stage  of  development  the  earth 
and  moon  formed  together  a  single 
sphere. 

If  we  may  adopt  this  view,  then  we 
must  regard  the  sphere  as  subject  to  the 
tidal  influence  of  the  sun.  It  was  much 
hotter,  and  therefore  more  yielding,  than 
the  present  earth  ;  it  was  also  rotating 
much  faster,  probably  once  in  about  four 
or  five  hours.  It  would  be  contracting 
as  a  consequence  of  cooling,  and  the 
contraction  would  lead  to  instability 
(gravitational  instability) ;  its  rapid  rota- 
tion would  also  tend  toward  instability 
(rotational  instability).  It  is  difficult  to 
say  which  of  these  two,  gravitational  or 
rotational  instability,  would  be  the  most 
effective  ;  but  the  combined  result  would 
be  to  give  a  pear-shaped  form  to  the 
rotating  mass,  and  eventually  to  deepen 
the  constriction  between  the  narrow  and 
the  broad  end,  till  the  smaller  protuberance 
became  comj)letely  dissevered  from  the 
larger  mass,  and  so  entered  on  an  inde- 
pendent   existence    as    the    moon.    This 


THE    BEGINNING    OF    THE    EARTH 


final  step  in  the  process  would  probably 

depend  on  the  tide-producing  power  of  the 

sun  ;    the  larger  mass  remained  behind  as 

the  earth,  whose  individual  existence  may 

be  said  to  date  from  this  event. 

The  young  earth  would  be  subject  to 

very  much  the    same  conditions  after  as 

before    the     ejection     of     the 

ow     c       moon,  and  might  very  possibly 
Moon  Broke  •  •    ?  v,         j 

.  agam  pass  mto  a  pear-shaped 

^*^  form,  but  without   proceeding 

further  through  those  subsequent  changes, 
which  would  have  led  to  the  formation 
of  another  satellite  ;    and  while  possessing 
some  such  form  as  this,  she  might  very 
well  have  consolidated.     With  advancing 
years  she  would  lose,   as  we  have  seen, 
the  activity  of  her  youth,  the  drag  of  the 
tides  would  cause  her  to  spin  ever  more 
slowly  on   her   axis,    till   the   day   would 
become      pro- 
longed to  the    I  •  .    L     0     U      f     S 
t  w  e  n  t  y-four 
hours    of    the 
present.   With 
this      dimin- 
ished   rate    of 
spin,  the  earth, 
if  free  to  yield. 
would  lose  tilt 
pear  -  shaped 
form   and   be- 
come an  oblate 
spheroid,    and 
the  oblateness 
of  this  spheroid 

would    con- 

tinuallydimin-  the   shaping   of  the   face   of  the   earth 

ish     so    that    it  Soon  after  the  earth  had  cooled  down,  so  that  the  oceans  were  formed,  the  would     appear 

'  ,j  .  shaping  of  the  great  continents  began.     The  action  of  moving  water  in  the  ,■,      ,      ,,  j- 

would     COntm-  makingofnewlandiswelliUustratedbythevastdeltaoftheMississippi,  where  inat     tne     Qia- 

Uallvanoroach  *"  area  larger  than  Wales  has  been  formed  by  debris  deposited  by  the  river,  j-fig^gj-      drawn 

towards  a  true  sphere.    Suppose,  however, 


great  continent  of  Africa  projects  like 
the  narrow  end  of  a  pear  ;  around  it  are 
oceans — the  Atlantic,  the  Indian  Ocean, 
and  the  Mediterranean  Sea,  which  was 
once  of  far  greater  extent ;  then  comes 
a  great  dismembered  ring  of  land,  the 
two  Americas,  the  Antarctic  continent, 
Australia,  Asia,  and  Europe.  Within 
these,  on  the  side  opposite  to  Africa,  is 
the  great  Pacific  Ocean,  which  covers 
over  the  broad  end  of  the  pear. 

A  line  drawn  from  somewhere  in  Central 
Africa  to  its  antipodes  in  the  Pacific, 
through  the  centre  of  the  earth,  would 
correspond  to  the  long  axis  of  the  pear  ; 
a  second,  at  right  angles  to  this,  would 
correspond  to  its  breadth  ;  and  a  third, 
at  right  angles  to  both,  would  correspond 
to  the  axis  on  which  it  rotates.  A  dia- 
meter   of    the    earth    taken    through    the 

equator    is 


Jkf 


^ 


C^^fi  relon 


Sou  nd 


■•J. 


\T^, 


MISSISSIPPI 


almost  8,000 
miles  in  length, 
the  Polar  dia- 
meter is  about 
sixteen  miles 
shorter,  and 
this  slight 
difference 
measures  the 
oblateness  of 
the  spheroid, 
or  the  depar- 
ture of  the 
form  of  the 
earth  from  a 
true  sphere. 
Further,        it 


that  the  earth  as  it  cooled  lost  its  power 
of  readily  yielding — and  at  present  it  is 
more  rigid  than  a  globe  of  steel — then  it 
would  pass  from  form  to  form,  not  by  a 
flowing  movement,  but  by  a  series  of 
ruptures,  and  its  form  at  any  moment 
might  be  a  little  in  arrear  of  that  which 
it  would  have  possessed  if  it  had  been  in 
the  fluid  state. 

Thus  it  might  indeed  be  possible  still 
to  discover  some  trace  of  an  old-fashioned 
form  in  the  existing  planet ;  and  a  careful 
examination  of  the  distribution  of  land  and 
sea  as  represented  on  a  terrestrial  globe 
does,  in  fact,  reveal  a  remarkable  sym- 
metry, in  which  we  seem  to  recognise  a 
surviving  vestige  of  its  early  state.     The 


by  debris  deposited  by  tne  river,     rnpter 

through  Africa  is  about  half  a  mile  longer 
than  the  equatorial  diameter  taken  at 
right  angles  to  it,  and  this  insignificant 
quantity  measures  the  departure  of  the 
form  of  the  earth  from  that  of  an  oblate 
spheroid  to  that  of  a  pear,  so  nearly 
complete  is  the  adjustment  of  its  form 
to  existing  conditions.  Before 
this  nice  adjustment  was 
reached,  the  earth  must  have 
suffered  many  changes,  passed 
through  many  times  of  stress  and  storm, 
and  witnessed  many  geological  revolutions. 
If,  at  the  beginning  of  her  career,  the 
earth  was  molten,  or  at  a  very  high  tem- 
perature, she  must  have  been  surrounded 
by  a  very  deep  and  dense  atmosphere, 
for  all  the  waters  which  now  rest  on  her 

85 


Earth's 

Unknown 

Changes 


HISTORY    OF    THE     WORLD 


surface — oceans,  lakes,  and  rivers — would 

have   contributed   to   it   in   the   state   of 

steam  ;    and  not  till  the  temperature  of 

the  ground  had  fallen  to  380  deg.  C.  could 

liquid    water    have    begun    to 

r  D  4^        accumulate.      Then    a    steady 

of  Red-hot    ^lo^npour    of    almost    red-hot 

*"^'  rain  would  have  set  in,  filling 

up  the  neck  of    the    pear  and  extending 

far  and  wide  over  its  broad  end. 

The  temperature  would  now  fall  some- 
what rapidly,  and  in  a  short  space  of  time 
the  surface  of  the  earth  would  have 
become  as  cool  as  it  is  at  the  present  day. 
Directly  the  waters  of  the  firmament  had 
collected  into  the  oceans,  leaving  behind 
an  atmosphere  like  that  which  now 
exists,  geological  agencies  of  the  kind  we 
are  now  famihar  with  would  begin  their 
sway.  Air  and  rain  would  exert  their 
insidious  power  upon  the  rocks,  sapping 
their  strength,  converting  the  hardest 
granite  into  soft  sand  and  clay,  which 
would  be  washed  away  by  the  rain 
through  brooks  and  rivulets  into  the 
channels  of  many  rivers,  all  hastening 
with  their  burden  of  sediment,  to  deposit 
it  finally  in  the  sea.  Here  it  would 
accumulate,  layer  after  layer,  building  up 
those  mighty  masses  of  strata  which  now 
form  the  greater  part 
of  the  visible  land. 
While  this  general 
action  was  every- 
where in  progress, 
wearing  down  con- 
tinents and  islands 
towards  the  level  of 
the  sea,  more  special- 
ised activities  were 
assisting  to  the  same 
end. 

The  waves  which 
fall  upon  our  coasts 
are  now  constantly 
undermining  the  cliffs 
and  extending  the 
margin  of  the  sea  at 
the  expense  of  the 
land,  and  rivers  not 
only  serve  to  trans- 
l)ort  sediment,  but 
cut  down  their  chan- 
nels   deep    into    the 


Action  of 
Winds 
and  Tides 


rock,   and    so   carve 

out  the  most  varied  two  stages  in  the  life  of  the  earth 

1  inrkrnnpQ  nf  Viill  nnH  This   illustrates    in    striking   manner,  based   on   the   cal-     f„„    rnorp   widflv    Hi<s 

landscapes  01  mil  ana  culations  of  the  best  authorities,  the  comparative  sizes  of    ^^^    "1"^^   WlUCiy    QIS 

valley     from      mono-  theearth.first  as  a  gaseous  mass,  and,  second,  after  it  had     tributcd     than     are 


When  we  enter  into  calculations  we  are 
astonished  at  the  rapidity  with  which 
these  agents  perform  their  work  even  at 
the  present  day ;  but  as  we  proceed 
farther  back  into  the  past,  when  the  earth 
was  full  of  youthful  energy,  their  power 
must  have  been  greatly  enhanced.  We 
might  almost  take  the  measure  of  the  day 
as  the  measure  of  their  work,  for  they 
probably  accomplished  as  much  during  the 
eight  hours'  day  which  once  existed  as 
they  do  now  in  twenty-four  hours.  A 
little  consideration  will  make  this  clear. 
It  is  the  winds  which,  blowing  over  the 
surface  of  the  ocean,  produce  the  sea 
waves,  and  it  is  these  falling  on  our  coasts 
that  perform  the  work  of  marine  denuda- 
tion. But  the  winds  are  due  in  the  first 
place  to  the  heat  of  the  sun,  and  the 
difference  of  temperature  established  at  the 
equator  and  the  poles  ;  and,  in  the  next 
place,  to  the  rotation  of  the  earth.  Thus, 
with  the  increased  rapidity  of 
rotation  which  we  know  to  have 
existed,  and  with  increased 
radiation  from  the  sun,  a  very 
probable  contingency,  the  winds  would 
increase  in  strength  and  more  powerfully 
erode  our  coasts.  Again,  with  the  moon  in 
greater  proximity,  and  with  a  more  rapid 
rotation  of  the  earth, 
the  tides  would  be 
much  higher  and 
more  frequent,  and 
these,  raising  and 
lowering  the  cutting 
edge  of  the  sea,  great- 
ly assist  it  in  its  work 
of  destruction.  The 
winds  and  the  tides 
produce  various 
marine  currents,  and 
these  help  to  distri- 
bute the  sediment 
which  the  rivers  de- 
liver into  the  sea,  so 
that  when  stronger 
currents  flowed  as  a 
result  of  more  power- 
ful tides  and  more 
violent  winds,  the 
sediments  would  be 
strewn  over  wider 
areas  ;  hence,  the 
more  ancient  strata 
of     our    planet    are 


t  ono  us 
86 


tableland. 


cooled  down  and  solidified  into  the  planet  on  which  we  live,     j-t,-  ^f     '[dor    +im<:> 

The  small  dot  represents  8,000  miles,  the  earth's  diameter.     mOSC    OI    laicr     lime- 


THREE  VIEWS  OF  THE  GLOBE  SHOWING  HOW  THE  GREAT  MOUNTAIN  RANGES  WERE  FORMED 
In  the  days  when  the  earths  crust  had  formed  but  was  still  unstable,  the  process  of  cooling  not  having  gone  far 
enough,  there  would  not  be  the  mountains  which  now  characterise  it.  These  came  when  the  earth  contracted  and 
crumpled  up  along  certain  well  defined  lines,  which  are  now  represented  by  the  three  great  mountain  chains  of  the  world. 


Building 

Up 

the  Earth 


Finally,  a  heavier  rainfall  would  result 
from  a  more  active  atmospheric  circulation, 
creating  larger  rivers,  and  thus,  at  the 
beginning,  all  those  denuding  agents  which 
are  engaged  in  wearing  the  land  down  into 
the  sea  would  be  working  at  a  more  rapid 
pace.  Correspondingly,  all  the 
agents  which  are  occupied  in 
building  up  deposits  of  sedi- 
ments would  have  extended 
their  operations  over  a  wider  area,  laying 
down  a  foundation  broad  and  deep. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  contraction  of 
the  earth,  due  to  the  loss  of  its  energy  of 
rotation  as  well  as  of  its  internal  heat, 
would  also  have  proceeded  more  rapidly, 
new  land  would  have  emerged  from  the 
sea,  old  lands  would  have  been  submerged 
beneath  it  far  less  slowly  than  at  the 
present  day ;  ruptures  of  the  crust, 
accompanied  by  earthquakes  and  volcanic 
action,  would  have  been  more  frequent ; 
and  thus,  by  the  more  rapid  loss  of  its 
intrinsic  energy,  the  renovation  of  the 
earth  would  have  kept  pace  with  its 
accelerated  destruction. 

One  effect  of  the  contraction  of  the  earth 
which  has  manifested  itself  in  even  late 
geological  times  is  the  crumpling  up  of  the 
terrestrial  crust  into  the  sharp  folds  of 
mountain  chains  ;  but  at  the  beginning 
this  crumpling  must  have  been  far  more 
universal  and  energetic.  In  this  connec- 
tion it  is  interesting  to  observe  that  the 
most  ancient  rocks  known  to  us— the 
Archaean — never  present  themselves  under 
any  other  form  than  as  intensely  plicated 
masses.  They  originally  consisted  of  lava 
flows  and  volcanic  ashes,  of  ancient  sedi- 
ments and  limestones,  into  which  subterra- 
nean masses  of  granite  and  other  molten, 
deep-seated  rocks  have  been  injected ; 
but  under  the  intense  pressures  to  which 


they  were  subjected  after  their  formation 
they  and  the  invading  granite  have  entirely 
lost  their  original  character,  and  have 
been  metamorphosed  into  gneisses,  schists, 
and  marble,  all  sharply  and  closely  folded 
together.  In  any  given  district  the  direc- 
tion of  their  folding  is  maintained  with 
wonderful  constancy  over  great  distances. 
There  is  no  succeeding  system  of  rocks 
that  has  been  so  completely  transformed, 
so  universally  plicated,  as  this  ancient 
Archaean  complex. 

In  later  times  we  can  pass  from  stratum 
to  stratum  of  the  sedimentary  series 
and  read  their  history  almost  as  we  turn 
over  the  pages  of  a  book  ;  in  the  Archaean 
all  are  kneaded  together  into  a  state  of 
such  desperate  entanglement  as  to  defy 
the  powers  of  human  ingenuity  to  unravel 
them.  Thus  the  line  of  demarcation  between 
the  Archaean  and  subsequent  sedimentary 
systems  is  the  sharpest  and  most  absolute 
that  is  known  to  us  in  the  history  of  the 
earth.  It  marks  the  close  of  our  planet's 
infancy,  the  several  events  of  which  have 
passed  into  oblivion  as  profound  as  that 
of  our  own  forgetfulness  of  our  earliest 
days.  Later  events,  on  the  other  hand, 
are  recorded  in  the  stratified  series  with  a 
faithfulness  which  increases  as  we  approach 
existing  times. 

A  history  without  dates  must  seem  very 
unsatisfactory  to  a  historian,  and  the  ques- 
tion will  naturally  arise  whether 
we  can  assign  any  definite  time 
to  the  various  critical  events 
recorded  in  the  evolution  of 
the  earth.  At  present  we  can  only  make 
more  or  less  plausible  estimates.  Thus, 
from  a  consideration  of  the  thickness  of 
the  sedimentary  crust,  and  the  rate  at 
which  sediments  are  now  being  deposited, 
it    has    been    asserted    that    the    interval 

87 


How  Wc 

Know  These 
Wonders 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


which  separates  us  from  the  close  of  the 
Archsean  era  may  amount  to  about  twenty- 
six  millions  of  years.  Professor  Joly,  basing 
his  argument  on  the  undoubted  fact  that 
the  ocean  derives  the  greater  part  of  its  salt 
from  the  dissolved  material  contributed 
to  it  by  rivers,  comes  to  the  conclusion 
that  the  ocean  first  came  into  existence 

—.  -  about  one  hundred  millions  of 
1  ne  Ocean  .  j       j.v- 

fn/^    -ii-  years    ago.      As    regards    the 

100  million  1  •    ,,        r°,,  (V.      ^ 

V  ,j,  birth  of  the  moon,  Sir  George 

Years  old !  tn         •      i  -    • 

Darvvm  has  given  a  minimum 

limit  of  fifty-four  millions  of  years,  but  he 
adds  that  it  may  have  taken  place  many 
hundreds  of  millions  of  years  before  this. 
Lord  Kelvin  has  attempted  to  determine 
the  time  which  has  elapsed  since  the  earth 
first  acquired  a  solid  crust.  If  we  only  knew 
the  rate  at  which  the  earth  is  cooling  we 
might  calculate  back  to  this  time  with 
some  assurance  of  certainty,  always,  how- 
ever, on  the  assumption  that  the  earth  is 
simply  a  hot  body  cooling  like  any  other 
hot  body — such,  say,  as  a  red-hot  cannon- 
ball.  But  a  few  years  ago  it  began  to  be 
seriously  suspected  that  this  assumption 
was  a  very  doubtful  one,  for  a  new  ele- 
ment— radium — was  discovered  in  1898, 
which  possesses  the  remarkable  property 
of  spontaneously  liberating  heat,  and  this 
not  in  small  quantities,  but  at  an  aston- 
ishing rate.  One  gramme  of  radium,  for 
example,  gives  out  enough  heat  in  one  hour 
to  raise  the  temperature  of  one  gramme  of 
water  to  boiling  point ;  hour  after  hour, 
year  in,  year  out,  this  wonderful  substance 
is  setting  free  the  energy  it  contains,  and 
will  continue  to  do  so  until,  some  thou- 
sands of  years  hence,  it  has  exhausted  its 
store.  If  this  element  should  happen  to 
exist  in  sufficient  quantity  within  the 
earth,  then  the  earth  could  not  be  said 
to  be  cooling  just  like  a  piece  of  hot  iron, 
and  the  increase  of  temperature  we  experi- 
ence as  we  descend  towards  the  interior 
of  the  earth  might  possibly  be  due  to  the 
heat  set  free  from  radium.  Indeed,  the 
Th    P  argument    is    not  confined   to 

P  ''       the  earth  ;  it  may  apply  also  to 

.  the  sun,  and  much  of  the  heat 

'"*''***'  vve  derive  from  that  luminary 
mav  be  provided  by  bursting  atoms  of 
radium.  This  was  pointed  out  by  Sir 
George  Darwin  and  Professor  Joly  in  1903. 
It  became  obviously  a  question  of  the 
first  importance  to  discover  what  propor- 
tion of  the  earth's  crust  consists  of  radium, 
and  an  investigation  was  undertaken  for 
this  purpose   by  the  Hon,   R.  J.  Strutt, 


who  finds  that  the  rocks  composing  the 
earth's  crust  contain  a  superabundance 
of  radium — ^sufficient,  if  this  element  is 
uniformly  distributed  through  the  whole 
earth  in  the  same  proportion  as  it  occurs 
at  the  surface,  not  only  to  make  good  the 
heat  which  is  radiated  away  into  space, 
but  actually  to  raise  the  temperature  of 
our  planet,  which,  on  this  evidence,  should, 
therefore,  be  growing  not  colder,  but  hotter. 

This  is  a  result  as  disconcerting  at  first 
sight  as  it  is  astonishing,  and  its  effects 
are  very  wide-reaching.  Of  course,  it  com- 
pletely destroys  the  validity  of  Lord 
Kelvin's  argument,  but  it  also  deprives 
the  nebular  hypothesis  of  one  of  its  cher- 
ished lines  of  evidence — a  loss  which  the 
force  of  the  general  argument  enables  us 
to  bear  with  equanimit}^ 

In  any  case,  the  vast  body  of  facts 
bearing  on  the  history  of  the  earth  suffices 
to  show  that'  its  temperature  cannot  be 
rising.  Mr.  Strutt  has,  therefore,  imagined 
that  the  radium  is  not  uniformly  distri- 
buted throughout  the  mass  of  the  planet, 
and  supposes  that  it  is  restricted  to  an  ex- 
ternal  zone  forty-five  miles  in 
„"     ^  thickness ;    this    would  suffice 

veo  grea  ^^  maintain  the  earth  at  its 
existing  temperature.  If,  how- 
ever, we  admit  a  restriction  of  this  kind,  we 
are  in  no  way  bound  to  fix  the  limit  at  forty- 
five  miles.  All  we  can  say  is  that  we  do 
not  know  how  far  downwards  the  radium 
reaches — for  aught  we  know  five  miles,  or 
even  less,  is  as  likely  a  limit  as  forty-five 
miles.  Professor  Joly,  indeed,  maintains 
that  the  radium  we  meet  with  is  not  proper 
to  the  earth  at  all,  but  comes  from  the  sun. 

Radium  is  a  short-lived  element,  its 
existence  being  hmited  to  a  few  thousand 
years  ;  but  as  fast  as  it  decays  it  is  repro- 
duced at  the  expense  of  another  element — 
uranium — the  lifetime  of  which  is  measured 
by  hundreds  of  millions  of  years. 

The  last  quarter  of  a  century  has  proved 
fertile  in  great  discovcries^more  so  than 
any  corresponding  ])eriod  in  the  past.  As 
a  result,  the  whole  world  of  scientific 
thought  has  been  thrown  into  commo- 
tion ;  old-established  theories,  and  even 
the  most  fundamental  notions,  seem  to  be 
in  a  state  of  flux.  Under  the  stimulus  of 
new  ideas  great  questions,  such  as  the 
constitution  of  matter,  the  origin  of 
species,  and  the  birth  of  worlds  are  being 
re-investigated  with  renewed  energy,  and 
we  seem  to  be  on  the  eve  of  great  ev^ents. 
William  Johnson  Sollas 


FOUR  PERIODS  OF  THE  EARTH'S  DEVELOPAENT 

A  Postscript  to  Professor  Sollas's  Chapter  on  the  Wonderful 
Story     of     the     World's      Birth,     beginning      on      page      79 


■yHE  earth  was  once  "  a  fluid  haze  of  light." 
The  whole  solar  system  once  formed  a 
vast  nebula,  consisting  of  glowing  gas,  or 
a  swarm  of  meteoroids.  Our  planet  was 
slowly  shaped  into  a  globe  out  of  this  primi- 
tive nebula. 

This  globe  was  at  first  intensely  hot, 
and  probably  liquid.  A  solid  crust  formed 
on  the  surface  as  heat  was  lost  by  radiation, 
and  this  crust  consisted  of  the  oldest  rocks 
of  igneous  formation  like  the  granites  and 
gneisses.  During  this  Archaean  or  Eozoic 
Period,  the  earth  acquired  its  atmosphere 
and  its  oceans,  and  it  is  probable  that  the 
mysterious  origin  of  life  took  place. 

The  later  history  of  the  earth  since  the 
stratified  rocks  began  to  appear,  and  life 
existed,  is  divided  into  four  main  periods, 
of  which  the  first  is  known  as  Primary,  or 
Palaeozoic. 

The  First  Period  of  the  Earth 

Cambrian  System.  The  rocks  formed  in 
the  Cambrian  Age  are  mainly  grits,  quartz- 
ites,  and  conglomerates,  with  shales,  schists, 
and  limestones.  The  earth  was  then  mostly 
covered  by  seas,  and  the  first  well-defined 
forms  of  life  were  of  marine  origin. 

Silurian  System.  The  Silurian  rocks 
are  mostly  sandstones,  shales,  and  slates 
deposited  in  the  seas.  The  first  vertebrates 
made  their  appearance  as  fishes,  whilst 
insects  began  to  flutter  in  the  air,  and 
occasionally  to  alight  on  the  emerging  land. 

Devonian  System.  This  was  the  age  of 
the  old  red  sandstone.  Fishes  reached  a 
high  state  of  development,  whilst  the  first 
traces  appeared  of  land  vegetation,  ferns  and 
lycopods. 

Carboniferous  System.  This  system 
is  exceptionally  important,  because  its  chief 
rock  is  coal,  the  fossilised  remains  of  the 
luxuriant  vegetation  which  grew  in  tropical 
swamps.  The  first  terrestrial  animals,  true 
air  breathers,  now  appeared. 

Permian  System.  The  last  of  the  primary 
systems  gave  us  the  new  red  sandstone,  dis- 
tinguished from  the  old  by  lying  above  the 
coal  measures.  The  Permian  Age  was  appa- 
rently unfavourable  to  life,  and  is  only 
notable  for  the  first  appearance  of  the  land 
reptiles  into  which  the  amphibians  developed. 

The  Second  Period  of  the  Earth 

The  Secondary  Period  marks  the  emer- 
gence of  the  dry  land  into  importance  greater 
than  that  of  the  sea. 

Triassic  System.  The  Triassic  rocks 
chiefly  consist  of  sandstones  and  hardened 
clays  laid  down  in  shallow  sea  basins.  Land 
vegetation  now  first  began  to  assume  a 
modern  type,  with  conifers  and  cycads.  The 
seas  were  still  richly  peopled,  and  the  land  first 
gave  a  home  to  huge  reptiles,  or  dinosaurs. 

Jurassic  System.  This  system  is  marked 
by  a  great  variety  of  limestones,  the  product 


of  dead  sea  creatures.  It  is  essentially  the 
age  of  reptiles.  The  ichthyosaurus  disputed 
the  seas  with  the  plcsiosaurus ;  the  pterodactyl 
ruled  the  air  ;  whilst  on  land,  huge  monsters 
like  the  brontosaur  and  diplodocus  browsed 
on  tropical  vegetation.  From  these  reptiles 
the  birds  were  developing,  whilst  small  mar- 
supials, the  oldest  of  the  great  mammalian 
race,  skipped  under  the  branches. 

Cretaceous  System.  This  was  the  age  of 
the  great  chalk  deposits.  The  birds,  now 
emerging  from  their  reptilian  ancestry, 
dominated  its  life,  and  the  first  modern 
plants  appeared  on  the  land. 

The  Third  Period  of  the  Earth 

The  Tertiary  Period  marks  the  true  begin- 
ning of  modern  geological  history,  when  the 
great  outlines  of  geography  were  laid  down, 
and  the  first  representatives  of  modern  plants 
and  animals  made  their  appearance. 

Eocene  System.  The  Eocene  rocks  are 
mainly  limestones,  with  sandstone  and 
hardened  clays.  We  owe  them  to  the  sea  and 
its  organisms.  Modern  evergreen  trees  now 
first  appeared.  The  mammals  come  to  the 
front,  with  the  tapir-like  palaeotherium  and 
the  first  recognisable  ancestor  of  the  horse. 

Miocene  System.  The  Miocene  Age 
was  a  mountain-building  period,  when  the 
great  chain  which  runs  from  the  Alps  into 
Central  Asia  received  its  final  uplift. 
Deciduous  trees,  like  the  beech  and  elm,  now 
made  their  appearance.  The  giant  masto- 
don and  the  formidable  sabre-toothed  tiger 
roamed  the  Miocene  forest,  and  true  apes — 
man's  first  forerunners — mopped  and  mowed 
in  the  boughs. 

Pliocene  System.  The  last  of  the 
Tertiary  ages  set  the  final  stamp  on  the 
geological  moulding  of  the  earth's  crust. 
Its  plants  were  transitional  to  the  flora  of 
modern  Europe.  Great  herds  of  herbivora 
now  appeared. 

The  Fourth  Period  of  the  Earth 

The  Quaternary  Period  is  that  in  which  we 
are  still  living.  Its  outstanding  feature  is 
the  appearance  of  man. 

Pleistocene  or  Glacial  System.  Its 
essential  feature  was  the  appearance  of 
glacial  conditions  over  most  of  the  northern 
hemisphere,  when  great  ice  sheets  rubbed 
our  land  into  shape.  The  vegetation  was 
Arctic,  and  only  animals  like  the  reindeer  and 
the  hairy  mammoth  could  endure  the  cold. 

Human  or  Recent  System.  The  pre- 
cise antiquity  of  man  is  still  uncertain,  but 
it  was  only  after  the  close  of  the  Glacial 
Period  that  he  made  his  home  in  Europe, 
where  he  shared  a  precarious  existence  with 
mammoth,  cave-bear,  and  rhinoceros.  Man 
developed  through  the  Palceolithic  and  Neo- 
lithic ages  of  stone  implements  to  the  Bronze 
and  Iron  ages,  when  metal  was  first  worked. 
In  the  last  of  these  we  live. 

89 


GEOLOGICAL  CLOCK  OF  THE  WORLD'S  LIFE 

This  page  is  an  effort,  based  on  Professor  Lester  Ward's  calculations  in  "Pure  Sociology,"  to  show  the 
comparative  length  of  each  geological  period,  and  the  thin  white  line  between  Tertiary  and  Archaean  indicates 
the  period  of  human  history.  Thin  as  this  line  is— and  we  could  not  show  it  thinner — it  is  too  thick,  and  out  oi 
proportion  to  the  rest  of  the  clock.  If  we  assume  that  from  the  beginning  of  the  world — from  its  first  forming 
into  a  solid  sphere — to  the  present,  time  may  be  represented  by  a  day  of  twenty-four  hours,  the  time  occupied 
by  human  history  does  not  exceed  twelve  seconds.  This  is  reckoning  human  history  as  ten  thousand  years. 
There  is,  of  course,  no  possibility  of  obtaining  more  than  relative  figures  for  such  a  scheme  as  this,  which 
should  be  regarded  in  connection  with  the  previous  page  and  the  chart  of  the  Beginnings  of  Life,  facing  page  96 


The  thin  white  line  between  the  Tertiary  and  the  Archaean  periods  represents  the  duration  ot  linnian  history 
TABLE     SHOWING     PROPORTIONS     OF     YEARS     AND     HOURS 


Geological    Periods 


Archaean 

Laurentian  . . 

Cambrian 

Silurian 

Devonian 

Carboniferous 

Triassic 

Jurassic 

Cretaceous  . . 

Tertiary  and  Quaternary 


111. 


th.t 


vhl.Jl 


Years 


18,000,000 
18,000,000 
6,000,000 
6,000,000 
6,000,000 
6,000,000 
3,000,000 
3,000,000 
3,000,000 
3,000,000 


72,000,000         =      24 


TERTIARY    AND 

QUATERNARY     PERIODS  | 

At  a  rough  gr"ess,  three   million   years   may  be 
allowed  for  the  Tertiary  and  Quaternary  periods 

Geological     Periods 

j        Years 

Hrs. 

Min. 

Sec. 

Tertiary 

Pleistocene 

Human 

Total         ..         .. 

2,600,000 
300,000 
100,000 

- 

52 
6 

2 

- 

3,000,000 

I 

- 

- 

Human  History 

10,000           =          =           12 

qo 


HOW  LIFE  BECAME  POSSIBLE 

ON    THE    EARTH 

BY     DR.     ALFRED    RUSSEL    WALLACE 


pARLY  writers  on  the  relation  of  man 
*--'  and  animated  nature  to  the  material 
universe  not  only  assumed  that  the  latter 
existed  for  the  former,  but  that  both  alike 
were  the  results  of  special  acts  of  creation. 
Furthermore,  they  usually  took  it  for 
granted  that  all  things  were  created  very 
much  in  the  condition  in  which  we  now 
see  them,  and  that  any  changes  that  have 
since  taken  place  are  but  slight  superficial 
modifications  of  a  permanent  and  un- 
changing whole.  Not  only  were  the  sun 
and  moon  and  stars  created  as  appanages 
of  the  earth,  but  the  earth  itself  in  all  its 
details  of  sea  and  land,  hills  and  valleys, 
mountains  and  precipices,  swamps  and 
deserts,  was  made  and  fashioned  just  as 
we  now  see  it,  and  every  feature  of  its 
surface  was  supposed  to  have  some 
j)urpose  in  connection  with  man. 

These  purposes  we  could,  in  some  cases, 
understand,  while  in  others  they  seemed 
Th  OIH  wholly  unintelligible,  and  much 
J .  J  ingenuity  was  bestowed  by  the 
Q       .  natural   theologian  and  others 

to  explain  more  and  more  of 
the  observed  facts  from  this  point  of  view. 
The  same  opinions  prevailed  in  regard  to 
the  infinite  variety  of  animals  and  plants, 
each  individual  species  being  supposed  to 
have  been  an  independent  creation,  and 
all  to  have  some  definite  and  preordained 
purjiose  in  relation  to  mankind. 

These  views,  however  absurd  they  seem 
to  most  people  now,  were  almost  univer- 
sally held  so  recently  as  during  the  seven- 
teenth and  eighteenth  centuries,  and  were 
thus  coincident  with  one  of  the  most 
brilliant  ej^ochs  of  our  literature  and  our 
dawning  science  It  was  only  towards 
the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century, 
when  geology  became  widely  studied  and 
its  results  were  fully  appreciated,  that  the 
more  rational  conception  of  a  very  slow 
development  of  the  earth's  surface  during 
countless  ages  began  to  be  generally 
accepted. 

The  grand  nebular  hypothesis  of  Laplace 
came  to  reinforce  the  views  of  the  geolo- 


gists, by  showing  how  the  earth  itself  may 
have .  originated  as  a  gaseous  or  molten 
g'obe  ;  and  its  slow  process  of  cooling,  with 
the  reaction  of  the  interior  and  exterior 
on  each  other,  served  to  elucidate  the  facts 
of  the  heated  interior,  as  shown  by  hot 
springs  and  volcanoes,  as  well  as  many  of 
the  phenomena  presented  by  the  distorted 
Changing  ^"^  ^  metamorphosed  strata 
Conditions  ^^^'^^  ^^^^^d  its  crust.  Hence  it 
of  the  Earth  f>'^''ifi"ally  came  to  be  perceived 
that  the  condit  on  of  the  earth, 
with  all  its  endless  variations  of  surface, 
of  continents  and  oceans,  of  seas  and 
islands,  of  vast  plateaux  and  lofty 
mountain  ranges  and  extensive  low  and 
plains,  with  their  ravines  and  cataracts, 
their  great  lakes  and  stately  rivers,  was 
subject  to  perpetual  change,  f  om  that 
remote  epoch  when  it  seems  to  have 
been  actually  the  case  that  "  the  earth 
was  without  form  and  void,"  and  that 
owing  to  the  greater  density  of  the  vapour- 
laden  atmosphere,  "  darkness  was  upon 
the  face  of  the  deep." 

Another  field  of  geological  research 
forced  us  to  the  conclusion  that  the  same 
continued  process  of  change  had  affected 
the  forms  of  life  upon  the  earth.  When 
carefully  investigated,  the  crust  was  found 
to  abound  in  the  fossilised  remains  of 
animals  and  ])lants.  Careful  study  of 
these  showed  that  the  oldest  of  all  were 
of  comparatively  simple  structure,  .  nd 
that  the  higher  forms  only  appeared  in 
more  recent  epochs  ;  while  the  highest  of 
all  were  probably  very  little  older  than 

Changing       ^^^^     ^'^''^^-    ^    [*   /^       only 
Forms  durmg    the   last   half   century 

of  Life  *^^^  *^^  theory  of  Evolution 

has  been  elaborated  and  has 
become  generally  accepted  as  applicable 
to  the  whole  of  the  vast  cosmic  process 
--from  the  development  of  the  nebu'.T 
into  stars  and  suns  and  systems,  with 
a  corresponding  development  of  planets 
from  an  early  condition  of  intense  heat, 
through  a  more  or  less  lengthy  period 
of  cooling  and  contraction,  to  an  ultimate 

91 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


state  of  refrigeration,  the  earlier  and  later 
stages  being  alike  unsuited  to  the  existence 
of  hfe. 

More  important  still,  the  discovery  of 
the  theory  of  Natural  Selection  by  Darwin 
— and  at  a  later  period  by  myself — has 
led  to  a  satisfactory  explanation  of  the 
successive  appearance  of  higher  and  more 
complex  forms  of  life,  and  also 

eory  o      ^^  ^^^^^  wonderfully  minute  and 

Natural  ,  j    l,   ,■  r 

c  ,     ..  complex    adaptation   of    every 

Selection  r         ,        ./  ...  J^ 

species    to    its    conditions     of 

existence,  and  to  its  organic  as  wel'  as 
its  inorganic  environment,  which  all  other 
theories — even  the  most  recent — have 
failed  to  gra])j:)le  with. 

The  logical  completeness  as  well  as  the 
extreme  simi:)licity  of  this  explanation  of 
organic  evolution  has  led  great  numbers 
of  thoughtful  but  ill-informed  persons  to 
reject  it,  because  it  seems  to  render  un- 
necessary the  existence  of  a  primary 
intelligent  cause  ;  while  another  equally 
large  but,  as  I  think,  equally  ill-informed 
class — the  so-called  monists — use  it  to 
demonstrate  the  non-existence,  or,  at  all 
events,  the  needlessness,  of  any  such  cause. 
Both  alike  err,  because  they  fail  to  take 
cognisance  of  the  fact  that  every  form  of 
evolution,  and  pre-eminently  that  of  the 
organic  world,  is  an  explanation  of  a 
process  of  change,  a  law  of  development, 
not  in  any  sense  or  by  any  possibility  an 
explanation  of  fundamental  laws,  causes, 
or  origins.  It  presupposes  the  existence 
not  only  of  matter — itself  a  thing  whose 
nature  is  becoming  more  and  more 
mysterious  and  unthinkable  with  the 
advance  of  physical  science — but  of  all 
the  vast  comi)lex  of  laws  and  forces 
which  act  upon  it — mechanical,  physical, 
chemical,  and  electrical  laws  and  forces — 
al  more  or  less  dependent  on  the  still  more 
mysterious,  all-pervading  ether.  Thus,  the 
universe  n  its  purely  physical  and  in- 
organic aspect  is  now  seen  to  be  such  an 
overwhelmingly  complex  organism  as  to 
„,     .    ,  ,       suggest  to  most  minds  some 

Wonderful  "^ 


Complexity  of 


vast     ntelligent    power    per- 

the  Universe      ^'^[^"g  ^"-J  sustaining  it. 

Persons  to  whom  this  seems 
a  logical  necessity  will  not  be  much  disturbed 
by  the  dilemma  of  the  agnostics — that,  how- 
ever wonderful  the  material  universe  may 
be,  a  being  who  could  bring  it  into  existence 
must  be  more  wonderful,  and  that  they 
prefer  to  hold  the  lesser  marvel  to  be  self- 
existent  rather  than  the  greater.  When, 
however,  we  pass  from  the  inorganic  to 

92 


the  organic  world,  governed  by  a  new  set 
of  laws,  and  apparently  by  some  regulating 
and  controlling  forces  altogether  distinct 
from  those  at  work  in  inorganic  nature  ; 
and  when,  further,  we  see  that  these  organ- 
isms originated  at  some  definite  epoch 
when  the  earth  had  become  adapted  to 
sustain  them,  and  thereafter  developed 
into  two  great  branches  of  non-sentient 
and  sentient  life,  the  latter  gradually 
acquiring  higher  and  higher  senses  and 
faculties  till  it  culminated  in  man— ^a 
being  whose  higher  intellectual  and  moral 
nature  seems  adapted  for,  even  to  call 
for,  indefinite  development — this  logical 
necessity  for  some  higher  intelligence  to 
which  he  himself  owes  his  existence,  and 
which  alone  rendered  the  origin  of  sentient 
life  possible,  will  seem  still  more  irre- 
sistible. 

The  preceding  remarks  arc  intended  to 
suggest  that  the  theory  of  evolution, 
combined  with  the  quite  recent  and  very 
startling  advances  in  physical  science,  so 
far  from  making  the  universe  around  us 
more  intelligible  as  a  self-sustaining  and 
self-existent  whole,  has  really  rendered  it 
less  so,  by  showing  that  it  is 

n  'f .  J  .t  infinitely  more  complex  than 
Behind  the  1     j      <■  1  j 

^  we    had    formerly    supposed ; 

and  further,  that  matter  itself, 
instead  of  being,  as  was  once  believed,  a 
comparatively  simple  thing,  eternal  and 
indestructible,  is  in  all  its  various  forms  sub- 
ject to  decay  and  disintegration.  We  now 
see  that  the  only  thing  known  to  us  that  we 
can  conceive  as  having  unending  existence 
is  mind  itself ;  and,  just  as  Darwin's  theory 
of  Natural  Selection  has  opened  up  to  us 
an  infinite  field  of  study  and  admiration 
in  the  forms  and  colours  and  mutual 
relations  of  the  various  species  of  animals 
and  plants,  so  does  modern  science  open 
up  to  us  new  and  unfathomable  depths  in 
the  inner  structure  of  matter  and  of  the 
cosmos,  and  thus  compels  us  more  and 
more  to  recognise  a  mental  rather  than 
a  mere  physical  substratum  to  account 
for  its  existence. 

There  is,  however,  another  set  of  rela- 
tions which  have  been  hitherto  very  little 
studied — those  between  the  organic  and 
the  inorganic  worlds  in  their  broader 
asjjects.  These  are  now  found  to  be 
very  much  more  complex  and  more 
remarkable  than  is  usually  supj^o.scd, 
and  they  also  have  an  important  bearing 
upon  the  great  problem  of  the  origin 
and  destiny  of  man       This  is  a  subject 


HOW    LIFE    BECAME    POSSIBLE    ON    THE    EARTH 


which  opens  up  a  variety  of  considera- 
tions of  extreme  interest,  showing  that 
the  exact  adaptations  of  our  earth — 
and  presumably  of  any  other  planets—to 
enable  it  to  sustain  organic  life,  from  its 
first  appearance  and  through  its  long 
course  of  development,  is  as  varied  and 
complex  and  as  much  beyond  the  pos- 
sibihties  of  chance  coincidences  as  are 
any  of  the  individual  adaptations  of 
animals  and  plants  to  their  immediate 
environment.  Most  of  these  latter  adap- 
tations have  been  made  known  to  us  by 
Darwin  and  his  followers,  and  they  have 
excited  the  admiration  and  astonishment 
of  all  lovers  of  Nature.  When  the  ante- 
cedent and  grander  relations  of  planet  to 
hfe  are  studied  with  equal  care,  these  also 
will,  I  believe,  excite  deeper  admiration, 
still'  more  profound  astonishment,  be- 
cause any  secondary  laws  that  could  have 
brought  them  about  are  less  easy  to  dis- 
cover, or  even  to  imagine. 

Before  we  can  form  any  adequate 
idea  of  the  nature  of  a  world  which  shall 
be  able  to  support  and  develop  organic 
life,  we  must  consider  what  are  the  special 
conditions  that  alone  render 
such    hfe    possible.        We,    of 


Essential 
Conditions 
of  Life 


course,  refer  to  the  whole  of 
the  organic  world,  from  the 
lowest  to  the  highest,  not  to  the  few 
exceptional  cases  in  which  life  may  be 
possible  under  conditions  that  would  be 
fatal  to  the  higher  as  well  as  to  most  of 
the  lower  forms. 

The  one  striking  speciahty  of  the  higher 
animals— and  to  a  less  degree  of  the 
higher  i)lants — is  that  of  continuous,  all- 
})ervading  motion,  every  portion  of  their 
substance  being  in  a  state  of  flux  :  each 
particle  itself  moving,  growing,  living  and 
dying,  and  being  replaced  by  other 
particles  of  the  same  nature  and  fulfilling 
the  same  functions.  To  keep  up  this 
growth,  and  to  enable  every  part  of  the 
structure  to  be  continually  renewed,  food 
is  required.  This  is  taken  into  the 
stomach  of  animals  in  the  solid  or  liquid 
form,  is  then  decomposed  and  recomposed, 
that  which  is  useless  or  superfluous  being 
thrown  off  by  the  intestines,  while  what 
is  needed  for  growth  is  transformed 
into  blood  and  by  a  wonderfully  intricate 
system  of  branching  tubes  is  carried  to 
every  part  of  the  body,  furnishing  nourish- 
ment and  repair  alike  to  bone  and  muscle, 
to  all  the  internal  organs  and  all  the  out- 
ward integuments,   and   to   that   marvel- 


lously complex  nervous  system  which 
also  permeates  every  part  of  the  body 
and  is  essential  to  the  higher  mani- 
festations of  life— to  the  exertion  of 
force,  voluntary  motion,  and,  apparently, 
to  thought  itself.  Add  to  this  the  constant 
influx  of  air,  which  at  once  purifies  the 
blood  and  supplies  animal  heat,  and  is  so 
important  that  its  cessation 
The  Miracle  ^^^   ^   ^^^   minutes  is  usually 

?5  , .-    fatal,  and  we  have  a  machine 

Human  Life  ^^  complex  in  its  structure  and 
mode  of  action  that  the  most  elaborate 
of  human  machines  is  but  as  a  grain  of 
sand  to  a  world  in  comparison. 

Now  the  very  possibil.ty  of  such  a 
material  organism  as  this  depends  upon 
a  highly  complex  form  of  matter  termed 
protoplasm,  which  is  at  once  extremely 
plastic  and  of  extreme  instability,  and  is 
yet  capable  of  secreting  or  building  up  its 
atoms  into  such  solid  and  apparently 
durable  forms  as  bone,  horn,  and  hair, 
besides  the  various  liquids  and  semi- 
solids which  buid  up  the  organism. 
This  fundamental  organic  substance  con- 
sists of  only  four  chemical  elements — 
nitrogen,  hydrogen,  oxygen  and  carbon, 
and  almost  all  animal  and  vegetable 
structures  and  products  have  the  same 
elemental  constitution,  though  with  such 
widely  different  characteristics.  Four 
other  elements — sulphur,  hme,  silicon,  and 
phosphorus — also  occur  in  small  quantities 
in  organic  tissues,  to  supply  special  needs  ; 
but  these  are  not  essential  to  all  forms  of 
life,  and  are  only  taken  up  and  utilised  by 
the  living  protoplasm  when  required. 
Protoplasm  is  undoubtedly  the  basis  of 
physical  hfe,  yet  it  only  exists  in,  and  is 
produced  by,  living  organisms.  The 
moment  such  an  organism  dies,  disorgan- 
isation and  decay  set  in,  and  the  whole 
mass  becomes  gradually  changed  into 
more  stable  compounds,  or  into  its  con- 
stituent elements.  It  appears,  therefore, 
that  some  agency— usually  termed  "vital 
force " — must  be  at  work, 
®*^'*  first  to  produce  this  wonderful 

of  Physical  compound,  then  to  form  ,t 
into  "  cells  "—the  physiological 
units  of  all  organisms — and  afterwards 
to  direct  the  energies  supplied  by  heat 
and  light  so  as  to  build  up  the  exces- 
sively complex  structures,  with  all 
their  wonderful  powers  and  potentiahties, 
which  we  term  animals  and  plants.  All 
this  seems  to  imply  not  "a  force  "  only, 
but  very  many  forces,  all  of  which  must 

93 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


hav^e  some  kind  of  mind  in  or  behind  them, 
to  direct  these  forces  to  such  infinitely 
varied  yet  perfectly  defined  ends. 

Consider  for  a  moment  one  of  the 
simplest  of  these  cases.  Let  us  take  the 
minute  seed  of  one  of  the  great  tropical 
fig-trees,  and  another  seed  of  a  strawberry, 
or  of  garden  cress.  Both  will  be  about  the 
same  size  and  shape,  and  the 
"""^^  most  acute  microscopist  would 
°  jj  not  find  any  difference  in  the 
very  ay  -j^^gj-j^^j  Structure  that  could 
intelligibly  account  for  the  different  results 
when  these  httle  grains  of  protoplasm  are 
exposed  to  identical  conditions.  For, 
even  if  planted  near  each  other,  and 
exposed  to  the  same  amount  of  heat  and 
moisture,  to  the  very  same  atmosphere, 
and  the  same  kind  of  water,  as  well  as 
identically  the  same  soil,  yet  invariably 
the  one  will  grow  into  a  large  tree,  the 
other  into  a  small  herb,  and  in  the  course 
of  time,  still  with  no  change  whatever  of 
the  physical  conditions  to  which  both  are 
exposed,  each  will  produce  its  peculiar 
foliage,  and  flowers,  and  fruit,  very 
different  in  all  their  characters  from  those 
of  the  other.  Were  this  result  not  so 
common  as  to  seem  to  us  "  natural,"  we 
should  call  it  a  miracle  ;  and  it  is  really 
and  essentially  as  inexplicable  as  many 
things  which  are  termed  miracles  only 
because  they  are  unfamiliar  and 
inexplicable. 

Now,  this  wonderful  substance,  the  phy- 
sical base  of  all  life — and  as  it  is  the  only 
base  that  exists,  or  has  ever  existed, 
on  the  earth,  we  may  fairly  assume  that 
no  other  is  possible — can  only  maintain 
itself  and  perform  its  functions  under 
certain  very  definite  conditions,  which  con- 
ditions are  now  maintained  on  our  earth's 
surface,  and  must  have  been  maintained 
throughout  the  long  geological  periods 
during  which  life  has  been  slowly  develop- 
ing What  these  conditions  are  we  will 
now  proceed  to  show. 

The  first  essential  for  organic 
life  is  a  certain  very  limited 
range  of  temperature.  We  are 
so  accustomed  to  consider  the 
change  of  temperature  from  winter  to 
summer,  from  day  to  night,  and  that 
which  occurs  when  we  pass  from  the 
tropics  to  the  Polar  regions  as  being  very 
great,  that  we  do  not  realise  what  a  small 
proportion  such  changes  bear  to  the  whole 
range  of  temperature  that  exists  in  the 
known    universe.     The    absolute    zero   of 

94 


The  First 
Essential 
for  Life 


temperature  is  calculated  to  be  minus 
461°  F.,  while  the  heat  of  the  sun  has  been 
determined  to  be  over  10,000°  F.,  and  many 
of  the  stars  are  known  to  be  much  hotter 
than  the  sun.  The  actual  range  of  tem- 
perature is  therefore  enormous  ;  but  any 
development  of  organic  life  is  possible 
only  within  the  very  narrow  limits  of  the 
freezing  and  boiling  points  of  water,  since 
within  those  temperatures  only  is  the 
existence  of  liquid  water  possible.      But 

a  much  less  range  than  this  is  really  re- 
quired, because  albumen,  one  of  the  com- 
monest forms  of  protoplasm,  is  coagulated 
or  solidified  at  a  temperature  of  about 
160°  F.  Now,  if,  as  is  generally  believed, 
the  earth  has  been  once  a  liquid  or  even 
a  gaseous  mass  and  has  since  cooled  to  its 
present  temperature  on  the  surface,  and 
the  sun  is  undergoing  a  similar  process  of 
cooling,  we  are  able  to  understand  that 
the  very  limited  range  of  temperature 
within  which  life  development  is  possible 
implies  an  equally  limited  period  of  time 
as  compared  with  that  occupied  by 
the  whole  process  of  solar  and  plane- 
tary development. 

It  must  be  imderstood,  how- 
th^H*^t    ^  ^^^'^'  ^^^^  ^^^  present  tempera- 

f^th  ^s  ^"^^  °^  *^®  earth's  surface  s 
due  entirely  to  sun-heat,  and 
that  if  that  were  withdrawn  or  greatly 
diminished  the  whole  surface  of  the  globe 
would  be  permanently  far  below  the  freez- 
ing point  and  all  the  oceans  be  frozen 
for  a  considerable  depth  ;  so  that  aU 
organic  life  would  become  extinct.  Under 
such  conditions  no  renewed  develo{)ment 
of  life  would  be  possible  ;  and  it  is  therefore 
quite  certain  that  the  sun  has  actually 
maintained  the  uniform  moderate  tem- 
perature required,  and  must  continue 
to  maintain  it  for  whatever  future  period 
man  is  destined  to  continue  his  existence 
upon  the  earth. 

But  it  is  not  only  a  certain  amount  of 
heat  that  is  required,  but  also  a  sufficient 
quantity  of  light ;  and  this  implies  a  further 
restriction  of  conditions,  because  light 
is  due  to  vibrations  of  a  limited  range  of 
wave-length,  and  without  these  particular 
rays  plants  cannot  take  the  carbon  from 
the  carbonic  acid  in  the  atmosphere,  and 
by  its  means  build  up  the  wonderful  series 
of  carbon  compounds,  including  proto- 
plasm, which  are  essential  for  the  life 
of  animals.  What  is  commonly  termed 
dark  heat,  therefore,  would  not  be  suffi- 
cient for  the  development  of  any  but  the 


HOW    LIFE    BECAME    POSSIBLE    ON    THE    EARTH 


lowest  forms  of  life,  even  though  it  pro- 
duced the  necessary  temperature  during 
a  sufficient  period  of  time. 

All  organisms,  from  the  lowest  to  the 
highest,  whether  plant  or  animal,  consist 
very  largely  of  water,  and  its  constant  pre- 
sence either  in  the  liquid  or  gaseous  form 
is  essential  for  organic  life.  On  our  earth 
oceans  and  seas  occupy  the  greater 
part  of  the  surface,  while  their  average 
de{)th  is  so  great  that  the  quantity  of 
water  is  sufficient  to  cover  the  whole 
of  the  globe  free  from  inequalities  two 
miles  deep.  It  is  this  enormous  amount 
of  water  that  supplies  the  air  with  ample 
moisture,  such  as  renders  the  life  of 
the  tropics  so  luxuriant.  Yet  even  now 
the  inequality  of  water-supply  is  such 
that  large  areas  in  all  parts  of  the 
earth  are  what  we  term  deserts,  only 
supporting  a  very  few  iorms  of  life  that 
have  become  specially  adapted  to  them, 
and  certainly  unfitted  for  the  continuous 
development  of  life  from  lower  to  higher 
forms. 

Water  is  also  of  immense  importance  as 
an  equaliser  of  temperature,  the  currents 
of    the    ocean    conveying    the 
warmth  of  the  tropics  to  ameli- 


Water  and 

the 

Atmosphere 


orate  the  severity  of  temperate 
and  Polar  regions,  while  the 
amount  of  water- vapour  in  the  atmosphere 
acts  as  a  retainer  of  heat  during  the  night, 
without  which  it  is  probable  that  the  sur- 
face of  the  earth  would  freeze  every  night 
even  in  the  tropics.  When  we  consider 
that  water  consists  of  two  gases — oxygen 
and  hydrogen — in  definite  proportions,  and 
that  without  their  presence  m  these  pro- 
portions and  in  the  necessary  quantity 
the  development  of  organic  life  would 
have  been  impossible,  we  find  that  we  have 
here  a  remarkable  and  very  complex  set  of 
conditions  which  must  be  fulfilled  in  any 
planet  to  enable  it  to  develop  life. 

But  this  is  not  all.  The  atmosphere 
is  so  intimately  associated  with  water  in 
its  life-relations,  and  is  itself  so  absolutely 
essential  to  the  existence  from  moment  to 
moment  of  the  higher  animals,  that  the 
two  require  to  be  duly  proportioned  to 
each  other  and  to  the  globe  of  which  they 
form  a  part. 

In  the  first  place  the  atmosphere  must 
be  of  a  sufficient  density,  this  being  needed 
in  order  that  it  may  be  an  adequate  storer 
up  of  solar  heat,  and  also  in  order  that  it 
may  be  able  to  supply  sufficient  oxygen, 
water-vapour,  and   carbonic-acid   gas  for 


the  requirements  of  both  vegetable  and 
animal  life.  We  have  a  striking  example 
of  the  use  of  air  as  a  storcr-up  and  dis- 
tributor of  heat  and  moisture  in  the 
very  different  character  of  our  south-west 
and  north-east  winds.  The  effect  of  the 
density  of  the  air  is  equally  well  shown 
when  we  ascend  lofty  mountains  where  we 
find  perpetual    snow  and 

ProTects*  ^^^'  ^"^  ^^"^P^y  *°  *^^  ^^^^ 

e'  thV  N'  ht     ^^^^  *^^  ^^^  ^^  ^'^^  dense 

^  enough  to  retain  the  heat 

of  the  sun — which  is  actually  greater  than 
at  low  levels — so  that  at  night  the  tem- 
perature regularly  falls  below  the  freezing 
point.  On  the  other  hand  a  very  much 
denser  atmosphere  would  absorb  so  much 
water  vapour  as  probably  to  shut  out 
the  light  of  the  sun,  and  thus  have  a 
prejudicial  effect  on  vegetable  life. 

Again,  there  is  good  reason  to  believe 
that  the  proportions  of  the  various  gases 
in  the  atmosphere  are,  within  certain 
narrow  limits,  such  as  are  most  favourable 
not  only  for  the  life  that  actually  exists, 
but  for  any  life  that  could  be  developed 
from  the  elements  that  constitute  the  uni- 
verse. Oxygen  has  properties  which  seem 
absolutely  essential  to  organic  life  ;  but 
nitrogen,  though  only  serving  to  dilute 
the  oxygen  so  far  as  the  higher  animals 
are  directly  concerned,  is  yet  indirectly 
essential  lor  them,  since  it  is  in  vege- 
tables a  constituent  of  that  protoplasm 
which  is  the  very  substance  of  their  bodies. 
Now,  i^ilants  obtain  their  nitrogen  mainly 
from  the  minute  proportion  of  ammonia 
that  exists  in  the  atmosphere,  and  this 
ammonia  is  formed  by  the  union  of  the 
nitrogen  of  the  air  with  the  hydrogen  of  the 
water-vapour  under  the  influence  of  elec- 
tric discharges — that  is,  of  thunderstorms. 
It  is  evident,  then,  that  the  required 
amount  of  this  essential  compound  will 
depend  upon  a  due  adjustment  of  the 
quantities  of  nitrogen  and  aqueous  vapour 
always  present  ;  while  the  electric  dis- 
charges seem  to  be  due  to  the 
friction  of  various  strata  of  air 
with  each  other  and  with  the 
earth's  surface,  due  to  the  winds 
and  storms ;  and  winds  are  due  to  highl}^ 
complex  causes,  involving  the  rate  of  the 
earth's  rotation,  the  rise  and  fall  of  the  tide, 
the  density  of  the  atmosphere,  the  quan- 
tity of  its  aqueous  vapour,  and  the  amount 
of  solar  heat  which  it  receives.  Unless 
all  these  very  diverse  factors  existed  in 
their  due  proportion,  some  of  the  results 

95 


Use  of 

Thunder 
storms 


HISTORY    OF    THE     WORLD 


might  be  highly  prejudicial  if  not  quite 
inimical  to  the  development  of  life.  To 
these  various  adaptations  of  our  gaseous 
envelope  we  must  add  one  other.  Carbonic 
acid  gas  in  the  atmosphere  is  absolutely 
essential  to  vegetable  life,  while  it  is 
directly  antagonistic  to  that  of  the  higher 
animals.  Its  quantity  must,  therefore,  be 
strictly   proportionate    to    the 

,t  °**  ^'  needs  of  both  ;  and  that  benefi- 
.  cial  proportion  must  have  been 

™  ^'^  *"  preserved  throughout  the  whole 
period  of  the  existence  of  the  higher  air- 
breathing  animals. 

These  various  considerations  show  us 
that  our  atmosphere,  consisting  as  it  does 
mainly  of  two  common  gases  mixed 
together,  and  therefore  seeming  to  most 
people  one  of  the  simplest  things  possible, 
is  really  awonderfullycomplex  arrangement 
which  is  adapted  to  serve  the  purposes 
of  living  organisms  in  a  great  variety  of 
ways.  But  this  by  no  means  exhausts  the 
subject  of  its  adaptation  to  support  and 
develop  organic  life,  because  its  very 
existence  on  the  earth  in  a  suitable  quan- 
tity and  composed  of  the  essential  ele- 
ments can  be  shown  to  depend  on  other 
and  deeper  relations  which  will  now  be 
pointed  out. 

The  older  writers  on  the  subject  of  the 
habitability  of  the  planets  took  no  account 
whatever  of  the  importance  of  size,  dis- 
tance from  the  sun,  period  of  rotation, 
and  obliquity  of  the  ecliptic  as  determining 
the  possiliility  of  organic  life,  but  simply 
assumed  that,  because  the  earth  possessed 
an  abundant  life-development,  all  the  other 
planets  must  also  possess  it.  But  we  know 
that  the  above-mentioned  factors  are  of 
very  high  importance,  as  we  will  proceed 
briefly  to  j^oint  out. 

It  is  now  believed   that  the  amount  of- 

atmosphere  possessed  by  a  planet  is  due 

mainly,  perhaps  entirely,  to   the  planet's 

mass,  and  its  consequent  gravitative  power. 

Spectrum-analysis    has   shown   that   vast 

-,    ...  masses  of  gaseous  matter  exist 

Earth  s  •      ,,  ."  1    •-    • 

„      ,  m  the  universe,  and  it  is  pro- 

of  Gas  hable    that,     in    a     state     of 

extreme  tenuity,  these  are 
very  widely  diffused.  Just  as  meteoric 
dust  is  constantly  attracted  to  the  earth, 
and  periodically  in  larger  quantities,  so 
are  gases,  and  supposing  the  aggrega- 
tions of  free  gaseous  matter  to  have  been 
distributed  with  some  approach  to  uni- 
formity, then,  as  planets  grew  in  size, 
they  would  also  tend  to  secure  a  larger 
96 


amount  of  the  diffused  gases,  thus  forming 
deeper  atmospheres.  The  observed  facts 
agree  with  this  view.  The  largest  planets, 
Jupiter  and  Saturn,  have  such  a  depth 
of  atmosphere  as  permanently  to  obscure 
any  solid  interior  they  may  possess.  The 
only  planet  closely  approaching  the  earth 
in  size  and  density — Venus — has  an  atmo- 
sphere which  appears  to  be  loftier  than 
ours,  but  it  may  be  composed  of  different 
gases.  Mars,  which  has  only  one-ninth 
the  mass  of  the  earth,  has  a  lofty  but 
very  tenuous  atmosphere,  and  probably 
no  water,  the  Polar  snows  being  due  pro- 
bably to  the  freezing  of  some  dense  gas. 
The  climate  and  physical  condition  of 
Mars  is,  however,  still  a  subject  of  much 
controversy,  which  I  hope  to  discuss  in  a 
separate  work  dealing  with  the  arguments 
of  Professor  Lowell  [see  page  105J.  In  that 
volume  the  reader  will  find,  fully  set  forth 
my  reasons,  on  scientific  grounds,  against 
the  supposed  habitability  of  Mars. 

But,  besides  attracting  cosmic  masses 
of  gaseous  matter  to  form  its  atmosphere, 
there  is  another  equally  important  func- 
tion of  the  mass  of  a  planet — its  selective 

'.'I.    r    *!.  power  on   the  kind  of  gases  it 

The  Earth  ,  i           j    •        • 

_,  ,    ,        .  can   permanently  retain    in    a 

Selects  and  c            .    ,          'ri             1        1           c 

.,       _  tree    state,      ihe  molecules  ot 

Uses  Oas  ,..  ■          ,            j 
gases  are  in  a  condition  ot  rapid 

motion  in  all  directions,  which  explains 
the  elastic  force  they  exhibit.  The  speed 
of  this  motion  has  been  determined  for 
all  the  chief  gases,  and  also  the  gravitative 
force  necessary  to  prevent  them  from 
continually  escaping  into  space  from  the 
upper  limit  of  the  atmosphere.  Thus  the 
moon,  which  has  a  mass  only  one-eightieth 
that  of  the  earth,  can  retain  no  free  gas 
whatever  on  its  surface.  Mars  can  retain 
only  the  very  heavy  gases,  but  neither 
hydrogen  nor  water-vapour.  The  earth, 
however,  has  force  enough  to  retain  all 
the  gases  except  hydrogen,  which  is  just 
beyond  its  limit ;  and  this  may  explain 
why  it  is  that  there  is  no  free  hydrogen  in 
the  atmosphere,  although  this  gas  is  con- 
tinually ])roduced  in  small  quantities  by 
submarine  volcanoes,  is  emitted  some- 
times from  fissures  in  volcanic  regions, 
and  is  a  jiroduct  of  decaying  vegetation. 
Once  united  with  oxygen  to  form  water, 
it  becomes  amenable  to  gravity  in  the 
form  of  invisible  aqueous  vapour,  and  is 
thenceforth  a  permanent  possession  for 
us  in  its  most  valuable  form. 

The  very  accurate  adjustments  that 
render  our  earth  suitable  for  the  production 


HOW    LIFE    BECAME    POSSIBLE    ON    THE    EARTH 


and  long-continued  development  of 
organic  life,  culminating  in  man,  may  be 
well  shown  by  another  consideration.  If 
our  earth  had  been  9,600  miles  instead  of 
8,000  miles  in  diameter — a  very  small 
increase  in  view  of  the  immense  range  of 
planetary  magnitudes  from  Mercury  to 
Jupiter — with  a  slight  proportionate  in- 
crease in  density,  due  to  its  greater  force 
of  gravitative  compression,  its  mass  would 
have  been  about  double  what  it  is  now. 
This  would  probably  have  led  to  its  having 
attracted  and  retained  double  the  amount 
of  gases,  in  which  case  the  water  produced 
would  have  been  double  what  it  is — 
perhaps  even  more,  because  hydrogen  gas 
would  not  then  escape  into  space  as  it 
does  now.  But  the  surface  of  the  globe 
would  have  been  only  one-half  greater 
than  at  present ;  so  that,  unless  the  ocean 
cavities  were  twice  as  deep  as  they  actually 
are,  the  whole  surface  of  the  earth — except, 
perhaps,  a  few  tops  of  submarine  vol- 
canoes— would  have  been  covered  several 
miles  deep  in  water,  and  all  terrestrial 
life  would  have  been  impossible. 

From   the   various   considerations   here 
Th    D  ^^^  forth  it  appears  clear  to  me 

. ,         .         that  no  other  planet  of  the  solar 

Atmosphere  ,  ,      ^  , 

of  Venus  system  makes  any  approach  to 
the  conditions  essential  for  the 
development  of  a  rich  and  varied  organic 
life  such  as  adorns  our  earth.  One  only 
— Venus — has  a  sufficient  bulk  and  density 
to  give  it  the  needful  atmosphere  ;  but  as 
it  receives  about  twice  as  much  solar  heat 
as  does  the  earth,  it  is  probable  that  its 
very  deep  atmosphere  may  be  mainly  due 
to  the  fact  that  a  large  proportion  of  its 
water  is  held  in  a  state  of  vapour,  'ts 
seas  and  oceans  being  proportionately 
reduced  in  extent.  Judging  from  what 
happens  on  the  earth,  this  would  probably 
lead  to  an  excessive  area  of  deserts,  and 
thus  be  inimical  to  hfe.  But  this  planet 
appears  to  possess  one  feature  which 
renders  it  fundamentally  unsuitable  for 
organic  life. 

Several  modern  observers  have  found 
that  the  older  astronomers  were  all  in  error 
in  giving  Venus  a  rotation-period  almost 
exactly  the  same  as  ours,  an  error  due  to 
the  indefinite  and  variable  markings  of  its 
surface.  They  have  now  deduced  a  period 
about  equal  to  that  of  its  revolution  round 
the  sun — a  rate  whi^h  has  been  confirmed 
by  spectrum-analysis,  and  further  con- 
firmed by  the  fact  that  this  planet  has  no 
measurable  polar  compression.    As  during 


transits  of  Venus  over  the  sun's  disc  the 

conditions  for  the  accurate  measurement 

of  the    compression,     if   any    exist,    are 

the  best  possible,  and  as  none  has  been 

found,  this  alone  affords  a  demonstration 

that  the  rate  of  rotation  must  be  very  s  ow, 

because  the  laws  of  motion  necessitate  a 

-J..     ,.  definite   amount  of  equatorial 

Why  there  ,    ,  ^  ,.         , 

, .-       protuberance  correspondmg  to 
IS  no  Liifc       ii     ,  ,  TT   ir    ^r  7 

on  Venus  ^^^^'      "-^^^  ^^®    surface 

has,  therefore,  perpetual  day 
and  the  other  half  perpetual  night,  lead- 
ing to  violent  contrasts  of  heat  and  cold 
for  the  two  hemispheres  with,  in  all  pro- 
bability, correspondingly  violent  winds, 
rains,  and  electrical  disturbances — con- 
ditions so  entirely  opposed  to  the  uni- 
formity of  temperatures  and  stability  of 
meteorological  phenomena  during  long 
geological  epochs  which  are  essential  for 
the  full  development  of  organic  life,  that 
such  development  is  perhaps  less  probable 
on  this  planet  than  on  any  other. 

I  think  I  have  now  shown  not  only  that 
no  other  planet  in  the  solar  system  makes 
any  approach  to  the  possession  of  the 
varied  and  complex  adaptations  which 
are  essential  for  a  full  development  of 
organic  lite,  but  also  that  on  the  Earth 
itself  the  conditions  are  so  numerous  and 
so  nicely  balanced  that  very  moderate 
deviations  in  excess  or  defect  of  what 
actually  exists  in  the  case  of  any  one 
of  them — and  of  others  not  referred  to 
here — might  have  rendered  it  equally 
unsuitable,  so  that  either  no  organic  life 
at  all,  or  only  a  very  low  type  of  life,  could 
have  been  developed  or  supported. 

If,  then,  the  more  superficial  indications 
of  design  in  the  relations  of  animals  to 
their  environment,  and  of  man  to  the  uni- 
verse, have  been  shown  by  modern  science 
to  have  required  no  special  interference  of 
a  higher  power  to  bring  them  about,  but 
that  they  have  been  due  to  natural  laws 
acting  in  accordance  with  and  in  subordina- 
tion to  the  deeper  laws  and  forces  that 
determine  the  very  constitution  of  matter 
.  and  the  unknown  power  and 
Pur''osrin    P""ciple  we  term  "hfe," — yet, 

Jll^vjlJ^    01^  the  other  hand,  we  find  that 
our  world  r    1       .      1  r      , 

a  more    careful   study  of  the 

outer  universe,  or  cosmos,  reveals  a  new  set 
of  adaptations  not  less  wonderful  or  more 
easily  explicable  by  chance  coincidence 
than  those  presented  by  the  organic  world. 
Even  the  very  brief  sketch  of  the  sub- 
ject here  given  suggests  the  idea  of  pur- 
pose in  a  world  so  precisely  and  uniquely 

97 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


adapted  to  develop  organic  life,  and  to 
support  that  life  during  the  countless  ages 
required  for  the  completed  evolution  of 
man.  But  that  suggestion  becomes  a 
logical  induction  when  the  whole  of  the 
available  evidence  is  set  forth,  as  I  have 
attempted  to  set  it  forth  in  my  work  on 
"  Man's  Place  in  the  Universe."  I  have 
there  shown  not  only  that  the  cumulative 
evidence  for  the  earth  being  the  only  sup- 
porter of  a  fully-developed  organic  life 
within  the  solar  system  is  irresistible,  but 
that  there  is  some  direct,  and  much  more 
indirect,  evidence  that  this  uniqueness 
extends  to  the  whole  stellar  universe ;  and  it 
is  ccEtain  that  no  particle  of  aired  evidence 
for  the  existence  of  organic  life  elsewhere 
has  been,  or  is  likely  to  be,  adduced. 

I  have  also  shown  (in  an  appendix  to 
the  second  edition  of  my  book)  that  the 
purely  biological  argument  for  the  unique- 
ness of  the  development  of  man — as  the 


culminating  point  of  one  line  of  descent 
throughout  the  diverging  ramifications  of 
the  animal  kingdom — is  overwhelmmgly 
strong  ;  hence  the  logical  conclusion  from 
the  whole  of  the  evidence  is  that  man  is 
the  one  supreme  product  of  the  whole 
material  universe. 

My  object  in  the  present  essay  has  been 
limited  to  showing  that,  besides  and 
beyond  the  special  adaptations  of  the 
various  kinds  of  animals  and  plants  to  their 
special  environments,  there  exist  in  the 
earth  as  a  planet,  in  its  various  physical  and 
cosmical  relations,  a  whole  series  of  adapta- 
tions of  a  very  remarkable  character  which, 
so  far  as  we  can  judge,  are  essential  to  its 
function  as  a  life-producing  world.  The 
study  of  these  adaptations,  therefore,  may 
be  considered  to  be  appropriate  here,  as 
constituting  a  preliminary  chapter  in  the 
natural  history  of  the  Earth  and  of  Mankind. 
Alfred  Russel  Wallace 


H<:£^>^ 


/■^ 


THE    BEGINNING    OF    LIFE 

ON  THE  EARTH 

BY    DR.    C.    W.     SALEEBY 


For  some  decades  past  we  have  been 
faced  with  a  critical  difficulty  at  the  most 
critical  and  important  point  in  the  history 
of  the  earth.  In  the  first  place,  it  has  been 
definitely  established  that  in  the  earlier 
period  of  its  history  there  was  no  life 
whatever — as  the  word  is  usually  under- 
stood— upon  the  earth,  as  is  abundantly 
shown  elsewhere  in  this  work.  None  of  the 
conditions  that  make  life  possible,  as  we 
know  it.  were  satisfied.  As  a  recent  French 
writer  has  said,  life  is  an  aquatic  pheno- 
menon, absolutely  incapable  of  existence 
except  in  the  presence  of  liquid  water  ; 
and  there  was  an  age  of  vast  duration 
in  the  history  of  the  earth  when  all  its 
water  must  have  been  in  the  gaseous 
state.  Other  reasons  of  equal  cogency 
may  be  at  present  ignored.  The  broad 
fact  is  that,  however  widely  students  of 
this  matter  may  differ  on  other  points, 
there  is  absolute  agreement  upon  the 
cardinal    and    initial    fact    that    whereas 

Ti.     r    .1.    there  is  life    upon    the   earth 
The  Earth  ,,  ^        ,.  , 

now,   there  was  a  time  when 

there  was  none. 

Now,  in  the  ever  memorable 
year  1859,  Charles  Darwin  published  a 
volume,  the  main  thesis  of  which  is  now 
universally  accepted,  wherein  the  following 
is  the  last  sentence  :  "  There  is  grandeur  in 
this  view  of  life,  with  its  several  powers, 
having  been  originally  breathed  by  the 
Creator  into  a  few  forms  or  into  one  ; 
and  that,  whilst  this  planet  has  gone  cycling 
on  according  to  the  fixed  law  of  gravity, 
from  so  simple  a  beginning  endless  forms 
most  beautiful  and  most  wonderful  have 
been,  and  are  being  evolved."  "  The 
Origin  of  Species  "  may  be  said,  in  a  word, 
to  establish  the  doctrine  of  the  evolution 
of  living  organisms  upon  the  earth  "  by 
laws  acting  around  us  " — to  use  Darwin's 
own  phrase.  But  Darwin's  work  begins 
with  and  assumes  the  existence  of  life 
as  an  established  planetary  fact.  There 
obviously  remains  a  tremendous  gap 
in  the  evolutionary  philosophy  as  it  stands 
in  our  statement  of  it  thus  far  ;  and  the 
first  fact  which  we  have  to  note  is  that 


Without 
Life 


the  existence  and  recognition  of  this 
supposed  gap,  so  far  from  being  a  matter 
of  common  recognition  from  the  earliest 
times,  so  far  from  being  an  observation 
made  by  the  critics  of  the  doctrine  of 
evolution,  is,  on  the  contrary,  a  speciil 
doctrine  peculiar  to  scientific  study  and 

A  Gap  in  the  °^    ^"^^^    '"^^^"^   °"S^"'     ^^'"& 

Philoso  h      '"'^l<^6d      established — as     was 

ofEvoTuuL  supposed— within  the  memory 

of  many  now  livmg. 

If  we  turn  to  the  first  chapter  of  Genesis, 
we  shall  see  no  suggestion  or  recognition 
of  the  supposed  difficulty  involved  in  the 
beginning  of  life  upon  the  earth.  In  this 
immortal  piece  of  ancient  poetry  it  is 
stated  that  after  the  creation  of  the  heaven 
and  the  earth,  which  were  at  first  "  with- 
out form  and  void,"  God  said,  "  Let  the 
earth  bring  forth  grass  .  .  .  and  it  was 
so "  ;  and  later  God  said,  "  Let  the 
waters  bring  forth  abundantly  the  moving 
creature  that  hath  life  ...  let  the  earth 
bring  forth  the  living  creature  after  his 
kind."  Here  we  have  suggested  to  us 
the  natural  origin  of  living  creatures  in 
earth  and  sea  under  the  will  and  direction 
of  the  Creator  as  conceived  by  the  poet. 

Partly  to  the  influence  of  Genesis, 
partly  to  the  apparent  facts  of  observa- 
tion, and  partly  to  the  views  which  would 
naturally  be  held  by  poets  and  thinkers, 
we  may  attribute  the  belief  which  has 
been  held  by  man,  simple  and  philosophic 
alike,  since  first  men  began  to  think, 
until,  we  may  say,  the  third  quarter  of  the 
nineteenth  century — the  belief  that  the 
lowest  of  living  things  arose  by  a  natural 
genesis  or  so-called  spontaneous  genera- 
F"      Id  ^^^^     ^^     suitable      materials 

11  rv  *^-  already  provided  on  the  land 
on  the  Origin  •        ,1  t, 

of  Life  °^    ^^  ^^^'      ^    ^^^    "°^ 

suggested  or  believed  that  very 

large  and  conspicuous  living  creatures  were 

thus  bred,  though  it  is  true  that  the  ancients 

thought  even  crocodiles  to  be  generated 

by  the  action  of  the  sun  upon  the  slime 

of  the  Nile.   The  living  creatures  supposed 

to  arise  naturally  in  the  womb  of  earth — 

the  all-mother — were  mostly  small  crea- 

99 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


tures,  like  insects  and  worms.  The  ordi- 
nary belief  of  the  uninstructed  to-day — a 
belief  which  they  share  with  the  greatest 
thinkers  of  antiquity  and  the  Renaissance 
— is  that  the  cheese-mite,  for  instance, 
is  evolved  from  the  substance  of  the 
cheese.  Now,  it  is  of  particular  moment  to 
observe  the  vast  contrast  between  the 
.  significance  of  this  belief  prior 
The  Coming  ^^  the  publication  of  "The 
°       .  Origin   of    Species "    and    its 

significance  to-day.  Before  we 
accepted  the  doctrine  of  organic  evolution, 
the  supposed  spontaneous  origin  of  the 
cheese-mite  in  cheese,  or  of  the  maggot 
in  putrid  meat,  was  of  no  very  great 
moment  ;  a  maggot  or  a  cheese-mite  is 
an  extremely  insignificant  object.  So 
far  as  the  great  problems  of  the  universe 
are  concerned,  a  cheese-mite,  as  we  say, 
is  neither  "  here  nor  there,"  and  its  spon- 
taneous generation  was  not  regarded  as  a 
fact  of  any  great  moment. 

But  then  there  arose  Darwin,  who,  in 
establishing  the  doctrine  of  organic  evolu- 
tion already  supported  by  his  own  grand- 
father, by  Lamarck,  and  Goethe,  and 
Herbert  Spencer,  gave  an  entirely  new 
importance  to  the  question.  He  demon- 
strated how  we  could  conceive  the  evolution 
of  all  organisms,  including  man,  from  a 
"  few  simple  forms,"  under  the  continuous 
influence  of  natural  law  ;  and  thus  such 
forms  ceased  to  be  insignificant,  and  the 
manner  of  their  genesis  came  to  be  a  vital 
problem  in  more  senses  than  one.  Such 
organisms — the  mite,  the  maggot,  and 
even  the  mould — could  no  longer  be  re- 
garded as  insignificant,  for  they  were 
revealed  as  not  unlike  the  ancestors  of  man 
himself. 

The  question  of  the  beginning  of  life  upon 
the  earth  had  only  to  be  satisfactorily 
answered  for  the  establishment  of  the 
belief  in  a  continuous  process  of  evolution 
by  natural  law,  even  from  the  very  begin- 
ning of  the  earth  itself  "  without  form  and 

_     ,  ^.  void,"  until   the  production  of 

Evolution  a    ,1        i,-    i,      j.    t    • 

„     ..  the   highest    livmg    organisms 

Continuous       i  •   i_     ■■    j-      i  ■ 

_  which   it  displays  in  our  own 

A roccss 

time.  And  all  ages,  even  by  the 
mouths  of  their  great  thinkers  and  closest 
observers,  had  agreed  in  giving  an  ap- 
parently satisfactory  answer  to  this  ques- 
tion. It  might  well  have  been  thought 
that  Darwin  was  quite  entitled  to  ignore 
altogether,  as  he  did,  the  question  of  the 
origin  of  life.  Everyone  knew,  so  to  say, 
that  simple  living  organisms  were  every 

100 


day  evolved  in  organic  refuse  and  else- 
where. Darwin  himself,  if  we  may  judge 
from  a  casual  remark  in  a  letter,  regarded 
the  question  apparently  as  purely  specula- 
tive, and  of  small  real  moment.  It  is 
all  rubbish,  he  says,  thinking  about  the 
origin  of  life  ;  we  might  as  well  argue 
about  the  origin  of  matter.  We  must  be- 
ware of  illegitimately  attributing  opinions 
to  the  immortal  dead,  but  this  remark, 
though  a  casual  one,  does  seem  to  suggest 
that  Darwin  regarded  these  two  questions 
as  on  aU-fours,  if  not,  indeed,  as  different 
forms  of  the  same  question,  and  that,  if 
he  had  actually  formulated  his  views, 
they  would  have  taken  the  shape  of  the 
doctrine  which  asserts  that  life  is  implicit 
and  potential  in  matter  ;  in  other  words, 
that  when  suitable  conditions  arose — 
such,  for  instance,  as  the  presence  of  liquid 
water — matter  would  display  the  pro- 
perties of  life. 

Now,  the  remarkable  fact — one  of  the 
most  striking  in  the  history  of  science — 
is  that  the  time-honoured  belief  in  spon- 
taneous generation  should  have  been 
attacked,  and  attacked  with  apparent 
success,  just  at  the  very  time 
when  it  would  otherwise  have 
begun  to  assume  real  philo- 
sophic importance.  For  ages 
it  had  been  accepted,  taken  as  a  matter 
of  course,  and  not  regarded  as  having 
any  particular  bearing  upon  the  supreme 
questions.  Then  there  came  the  time 
when  this  belief  would  have  been  an 
all-important  link,  without  which  the 
chain  of  evolution  could  not  be  com- 
pleted, a  link  without  which  we  were  left 
to  contemplate  a  perfect  chain  of  inorganic 
evolution — the  history  of  the  earth  before 
life — and  a  perfect  chain  of  organic  evolu- 
tion— the  history  of  life  upon  the  earth, 
with  an  abyss  between  the  two  that  could 
not  be  bridged,  for  how  came  life  where 
there  was  no  life  ?  A  series  of  experiments 
were  made,  experiments  in  which,  strikingly 
enough,  some  of  the  greatest  evolutionists 
of  the  day  took  a  leading  part,  and  these 
seemed  to  upset,  just  when  it  was  most 
wanted  by  themselves  for  the  establish- 
ment of  their  new  doctrine,  the  belief 
which  had  gone  without  question  for  so 
many  ages. 

Now,  some  may  be  inclined  to  wonder 
how  it  should  be  that  certain  pioneers 
of  the  new  doctrine  of  evolution,  such 
as  Tyndall  and  Huxley,  should  devote 
themselves    with    such    persistence    and 


An  Abyss 
that  could  not 
be  Bridged 


THE    BEGINNING    OF    LIFE    ON    THE    EARTH 


labour  and  force  to  the  overthrow  of  a 
doctrine  which  was  so  necessary  for  the 
complete  establishment  of  their  own  case 
— so  much  so,  that  when  they  had  over- 
thrown it,  they  found  themselves,  as  regards 
their  own  doctrine  of  evolution,  placed 
in  a  difficulty  from  which  they  did  not 
live  to  emerge.  It  is  my  own  belief  that 
this  question  can  be  answered,  and  the 
answer  is  of  strict  relevance  to  our  present 
inquiry.  I  believe  that  Huxley  and  Tyn- 
dall  were  largely  impelled  by  the  desire  to 
oppose  a  doctrine  of  the  nature  of  life 
which  was  current  in  their  time  and  is 
usually  called  "vitalism."  We  shall  not 
begin  to  understand  the  question  of  the 
beginning  of  life  upon  the  earth,  as  that 
question  may  be  legitimately  stated  to- 
day, unless  we  fully  realise  in  what  terms 
the  doctrine  of  spontaneous  generation 
was  accepted  in  the  past,  and  an  under- 
standing of  this  will  teach  us  that  the 
present-day  revival  of  this  doctrine  pre- 
sents it  in  a  form  very  different  from  that 
which  it  so  long  held.  Our  discussion  must 
be  somewhat  philosophic  in  character, 
but  the  question  at  issue  is  a  highly 
philosophic  one,  and  the  reason  why  we 
have  made  so  little  progress  in 

^ .  '/  ir       answering    it   hitherto  is   that 
only  Self-  r        •  v  ,  r 

^  men  of  science  have  too  fre- 
quently discussed  it  without 
paying  any  serious  attention  to  the  pro- 
found philosophic  questions  which  really 
underlie  it.  We  have  permitted  ourselves 
to  talk  freely  about  life  and  matter,  whilst 
claiming  the  right  to  take  for  granted  the 
absolute  validity  of  our  conceptions  of 
life  and  our  conceptions  of  matter. 

It  was  universally  held  by  those, 
philosophic  and  simple,  who  also  held 
throughout  so  many  centuries  the  belief 
in  spontaneous  generation,  that  there 
is  an  overwhelming  contrast  between 
living  and  lifeless  matter,  and  it  was  their 
belief  in  this  overwhelming  contrast  that 
led  them  to  give  to  the  doctrine  of  spon- 
taneous generation,  as  they  held  it,  a  form 
which  cannot  possibly  be  defended.  The 
great  character  of  life  was  conceived  to  be 
self-movement,  this  self-movement  being 
displayed  in  the  matter  which  composed 
the  living  organisms.  But  it  was  univers- 
ally held  that  matter,  as  it  was  seen 
otherwise  than  in  living  organisms,  was 
obviously  and  notoriously  inert,  gross, 
brute,  and  dead. 

The  great  influence  of  Plato  taught  men 
to   despise   matter   in    this    fashion,    and 


there  was  the  everyday  experience  that 
a  stone  lies  where  it  is  placed  until  some- 
thing from  outside  moves  it,  being, 
therefore,  inert,  whilst  a  living  creature 
such  as  a  bird  moves  freely  at  its  own 
will.  The  more  strongly  men  held  the 
natural  matter  of  which  the  earth  is  com- 
posed to  be  inert,  the  more  necessary  was 
_.  it   to  suppose  that  when    life 

J  J.  was    displayed    in  it    the   dif- 

f  PI  ference  consisted  in  the  taking 

possession  of  this  dull  clay 
by  a  vital  force — a  mystic  and  wonderful 
principle  of  quickening — which  endowed 
even  gross,  inert  matter  with  activity  and 
power.  From  the  time  of  Plato  until  the 
last  few  years  of  the  nineteenth  century 
thinkers  vied  with  one  another  in  insisting 
upon  the  impotence  and  grossness  and 
inertness  of  matter,  and  each  fresh 
insistence  upon  this  doctrine  rendered 
more  necessary  a  corresponding  doctrine 
of  vital  force  or  vitalism,  which  should 
explain  the  amazing  transformation  under- 
gone by,  let  us  say,  the  gross  and  inert 
matter  composing  food,  when  that  food 
was  converted  by  the  "  living  principle  " 
into  the  tissue  of  a  living  creature,  and 
then   displayed  self-movement. 

This  doctrine  of  vitalism,  which  held 
sway  for  so  long,  was  naturally  invoked 
to  explain  the  origin  of  life  upon  the 
earth,  when  the  advance  of  astronomy 
and  geology  demonstrated  a  natural 
evolution  for  the  earth  and  proved  that 
there  must  have  been  a  time  when  no  life 
was  possible  upon  it.  The  prevalent 
conception  of  matter  came  in  at  this 
point  and  denied  altogether  any  such 
monstrous  doctrine  as  that  the  wonderful 
thing  called  life  could  spontaneously 
arise  in  the  despicable  thing  called  matter. 
The  material  of  the  earth,  whether  solid, 
liquid  or  gaseous,  consisted  of  eternal, 
unchangeable,  and  indestructible  atoms. 
These  were  moved  as  forces  from  out- 
side moved  them.  They  had  no  energy 
p  or    power     of      their      own. 

f  D°^°d  ^  ^^^^  simply  thought  of  them 
»j  as     of      incredibly     minute 

grains  of  sand  of  various 
shapes  and  sizes,  and  it  was  as  im- 
possible to  conceive  of  life  being  spon- 
taneously generated  in  a  chance  heap 
of  inert  atoms  as  to  conceive  that  a 
heap  of  grains  of  sand  should  organise 
themselves  into  a  little  organism.  As  for 
spontaneous  generation  occurring  on  the 
earth  to-day,   the  development  of  mites 

lOI 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


from  cheese  and  so  forth,  that  was  a  very 
different  matter,  men  must  have  thought — 
in  so  far  as  they  thought  at  all — since 
cheese  and  flesh  and  so  forth  were  them- 
selves products  of  life.  It  is  well  worth 
noting  that  the  common  doctrine  of 
spontaneous  generation  was  always  held 
in  reference  to  organic  materials,  such 
_      _  as  the  slime  of  the  Nile — not 

y,    .^         the    dry  sand   of    the    desert. 

,  x>    t         The  reader  may  be  inclined  to 
of  Pasteur  ,  >     ur   t  +u- 

say  that  men  s  belieis  on  this 

subject  in  the  past  generation  make  very 
confused  reading,  and  indeed,  that  is  true. 
But  the  fact  is  that  their  beliefs  were  most 
confused.  The  work  of  Darwin  had 
staggered  everybody,  and  straightforward, 
systematic,  unprejudiced  thinking  was  very 
nearly  impossible  in  the  welter  of  con- 
troversy. Nevertheless,  something  ap- 
parently definite  was  done.  The  doctrine 
of  the  beginning  of  life  upon  the  earth 
was  left  almost  undiscussed,  and  the 
accepted  notion  of  the  nature  of  matter — 
a  notion  which  to  us  who  know  radium 
seems  puerile — was  left  unchallenged  in 
all  its  falsity.  But  the  work  of  the  great 
French  chemist  Pasteur  led  to  a  close 
examination  of  the  belief  that  humble 
forms  of  life  are  daily  produced  from  life- 
less organic  materials,  and  the  conclusion 
was  reached  that  no  such  spontaneous 
generation  occurs. 

This  conclusion  is  of  great  importance 
in  the  history  of  modern  thought,  and 
it  was  proclaimed  with  much  rejoicing 
and  vigour  as  a  great  achievement  of 
science,  whilst  some  of  its  chief  advocates 
seemed  at  times  to  forget  the  extreme 
awkwardness  of  the  inferences  which  had 
to  be  made  from  it.  The  doctrine  may 
be  stated  in  Latin  in  the  form  of  the 
familiar  dogma,  "  Omne  vivum  ex  vivo," 
every  living  thing  from  a  living  thing. 
Just  as  the  existence  of  a  man  is  quite 
sufficient  to  prove  to  us  the  prior  existence 
of  living  human  parents,  just  as  we  feel 
J,         , .  .      sure  that  every  beast  of  the 

Living  Thing  f  "^  ^hat  every  oak  has  sprung 
irom  an  acorn  developed  m  a 
previous  oak,  so,  according  to  the  doctrine 
of  "  Omne  vivum  ex  vivo,"  we  must 
believe  that  every  living  creature,  whether 
human,  animal,  or  vegetable,  whether  as 
big  as  the  mammoth  or  as  small  as  the 
smallest  microbe  not  one-twenty-thou- 
sandth part  of  an  inch  in  diameter,  has 
sprung    from    living    parents.      Nature, 

102 


according  to  this  doctrine,  was  divided — as 

Nature,  being  a  mighty  whole,  can  never 

be  divided — into  two  absolute  categories, 

the  living  and  the  lifeless,  or  living  matter 

and    dead    matter.     Dead    matter    was 

notoriously  dead  and  impotent,  and  life 

could  not  conceivably  arise  in  it,  though 

it  could  be  used  by  life  for  purposes  of 

food.     On  the  other  hand,  living  matter 

rejoiced    in    the    possession    of    all    those 

great    attributes    which    lifeless    matter 

lacked,     and,    in     accordance     with     the 

contrast  between  the  two  kinds  of  matter, 

the  living  could  never  be  produced  from 

the  lifeless  but  only  from  the  living  :    for 

every  creature,  microbe  or  mammoth  or 

man,  we  must  trace  back  in  imagination 

a    series    of     living    ancestors,    differing 

perhaps  in  various  characters,  but  always 

living.     This  series  must  be  traced  back 

and  back  and  back  until ? 

And    there    the    difficulty    arose.     For 

the    uninhabitableness    of    the    primitive 

earth  was  a  fact  of  which  men  of  science 

were  as  certain  as  if  from  some  habitable 

planet  they  had  been  able  to  gaze  upon  it. 

Notwithstanding   the   dogma  of    "  Omne 

w  .1.  T.     .     .vivum  ex  vivo,"    it    was    im- 

Life  Evolved  i  ,       ,  .     ii,    - 

,  possible    to  assert    that  every 

*K    f  -f  I        living  creature  has  an  endless 

series  oi  ancestors.    How,  then, 

did  life  begin  ? 

What  we  may  call  the  doctrine  of  the 
older  orthodoxy — the  doctrine  of  special 
creation,  of  supernatural  interposition  for 
the  introduction  of  a  new  entity  into  the 
scheme  of  things — offered  one  alternative. 
To  accept  it,  however,  would  be  to 
abandon  the  whole  modern  conception  of 
natural  law  and  of  a  universe  which  was 
not  created  once  on  a  day,  and  has  not 
been  tinkered  with  subsequently,  but 
from  everlasting  to  everlasting  is  the  con- 
tinuous expression  to  us  of  the  Infinite 
and  Eternal  Power  which  to  some  eyes 
it  veils  and  to  others  it  reveals.  Unless 
we  are  to  abandon  our  philosophy,  this 
alternative  cannot  be  accepted,  and  it  is 
now  accepted  by  no  philosophic  thinker. 

Thus,  whether  "  Omne  vivum  ex  vivo  " 
be  true  or  false  to-day,  we  are  compelled 
to  accept  the  only  other  alternative,  which 
is  that  it  has  not  always  been  true,  or,  in 
other  words,  that  life  was  spontaneously 
evolved  from  the  lifeless  (so-called)  at  some 
remote  age  in  the  past.  Just  at  the 
present  time  philosophic  biology  is  out  of 
fashion.  Minds  of  the  great  cast  which 
endeavour   to   see  things  in  their  eternal 


LORD  KELVIN 

MASTER    THINKERS    WHO    HAVE    CONTRIBUTED    TO    OUR    KNOWLEDGE    OF    LIFE 

Photos  by  Gerschel,  Maull  Sc  Fox,  E.  Walker,  London  Stereoscopic,  Barraud,  and  Mills 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


aspect  have  been  lacking  to  the  science 
of  Hfe  since  the  days  when  Huxley  and 
Spencer  were  in  the  plenitude  of  their 
powers.  Anyone  who  cares  to  compare 
the  principal  reviews  of  the  last  decade 
with  those  same  reviews  from  the  year 
of,  say,  1875  to  1890,  can  readily  see  this 
fact  for  himself.  In  the  absence  of  that 
deliberate  thought  and  discussion  without 
which  clear  ideas  on  any  subject  are 
impossible,  what  may  be  called  the  official 
opinion  of  biology  at  the  present  time  is 
thus  most  remarkable  and  contradictory. 
On  the  one  hand,  it  is  strenuously  asserted 
as  a  matter  of  dogma  that  at  the  present 
day  no  life  is  produced  or  producible  upon 
the  earth  except  by  the  process  of  repro- 
duction of  previously  existing  life  ;  and 
on  the  other  hand  it  is  asserted — when  the 
direct  question  is  put,  though  otherwise 
the  subject  is  simply  ignored — that  life 
must  somehow  or  other  have  been 
naturally  evolved  in  the  past,  presum- 
ably once  and  for  all.  I  have  called  this 
opinion  contradictory,  and  it  is  indeed  far 
more  contradictory  and  unsatisfactory 
than  it  may  at  present  appear.  The 
obvious  question  that  the  critic  asks 
is,   "If  then,  why  not  now?" 


" If  then, 
why 


The  answer  alleged  is  that, 
,,,     of     course,     the     experiments 

of  Pasteur  and  Tyndall,  to 
which  some  reference  must  afterwards  be 
made  here,  merely  demonstrated  the 
impossibility  of  the  spontaneous  genera- 
tion of  life  in  our  own  day  or  under  any 
conditions  similar  to  those  of  our  own 
day  ;  but  doubtless  the  first  few  simple 
forms  of  living  matter  arose  by  natural 
processes  at  some  distant  epoch  "  when 
the  conditions  were  very  different  from 
those  that  obtain  to-day."  Now  it  hap- 
pens to  be  true  that  every  difference 
between  past  and  present  conditions  which 
physics  and  geology  and  chemistry  can 
assert  tends  to  the  probability  that  if 
spontaneous  generation  is  impossible  now, 
it  must  have  been  a  hundredfold  more 
impossible  a  hundred  million  years  ago. 
Yet  for  some  three  decades  the  great 
majority  of  biologists  have  been  content 
to  believe  that  spontaneous  generation  is 
impossible  now,  even  though  land  and 
sea  and  sky  are  packed  with  organic 
matter  under  the  very  conditions  which 
obviously  favour  life — as  the  all  but 
omnipresence  of  life  abundant  to-day 
demonstrates — but  that  spontaneous 
generation  was  possible  in  the  past  when, 
104 


by  the  hypothesis,  there  was  no  organic 
matter  present  at  all,  and  when  life  had  to 
arise  in  the  union  and  architecture  of 
such  simple  substances  as  inorganic  car- 
bonates !  Such  biologists  are  like  those 
who  know  that  the  human  organism  can 
be  developed  from  the  microscopic 
germ  in  a  few  years,  but  find  it 
,   _ .,  -,        incredible  that  man  can  have 

Is  Life  Now      1  J         ^  J      X  11 

...  ,  been  developed  from  lowly 
Arising  from  ■  ■  j-  -^ 

♦K    I  -f  I      9  organisms   m    aeons  of   aeons. . 

JNor  has  any  livmg  biologist 

even    attempted    to    make    an   adequate 

answer    to    the    question,   why    what    is 

impossible  now  should  have  been  possible 

a   hundred    million    years    ago.      On   the 

contrary,  so  soon  as  the  matter  is  looked 

at   philosophically,   we    see    that    all    the 

probabilities,    all   the    analogies,    all    the 

great    generalisations    of   science,   are  in 

favour   of   the   belief   that   life   must   be 

arising  from  the  lifeless  now,  as  in  the 

past,   whenever   certain   conditions,   such 

as    the    assemblage    of    carbon,    oxygen, 

nitrogen  and  hydrogen  in  the  presence  of 

liquid  water,  are  satisfied. 

For  the  moment,  however,  I  propose  to 
postpone  this  question  of  the  truth  of 
"  Omne  vivum  ex  vivo  "  at  the  present 
day,  for  I  desire  to  throw  into  the  fore- 
front of  my  argument  two  quite  recent 
developments  of  science,  unreckoned  with 
because  non-existent  in  the  controversy 
of  the  'seventies,  and  in  my  judgment  not 
yet  duly  appraised  to-day.  In  the  present 
and  future  discussion  of  the  manner  and 
causation  of  that  supreme  event  in  the 
earth's  history,  the  beginning  of  life  upon 
it,  we  must  reckon  with  two  new  orders  of 
inquiry  relating  to  facts  unthinkably  con- 
trasted in  physical  magnitude  yet  equally 
relevant  to  our  subject.  The  first  series 
of  facts  with  which  I  will  deal  are  astro- 
nomic, and  the  second  atomic. 

In  discussing  the  origin  of  life  upon  the 

earth,  we  of  the  twentieth  century  must 

recognise  such  facts  as  may  be  obtainable 

in  regard  to  life  upon  other 

orbs  than  ours.     Now,  in  the 

i^^i!"  \iT  ij  first  place,  there  is  at  least 
Other  Worlds  fi      .    • 

one  illustrious  contemporary 

astronomer.  Professor  Pickering,  the  chief 
living  student  of  the  moon,  in  whose  opinion 
there  are  many  evidences  upon  our 
satellite  of  the  action  of  vegetation,  either 
past  or  present.  This,  of  course,  is  not 
the  place  for  a  discussion  of  that  evidence  ; 
it  is,  however,  the  place  to  record  the 
most  highly  qualified  opinion  at  present 


The  Evidence 
from 


THE    BEGINNING    OF    LIFE    ON    THE    EARTH 


obtainable,  and  to  remind  ourselves  of  the 

certainty  that  when  the  moon  was  first 

borne — or    born — from     the    earth,     life 

caqnot  possibly  have  been  evolved,  since 

the  conditions  of  temperature   alone,    to 

name  one  factor,  were  such  as  life  could 

not  sustain,  no  liquid  water  being  extant. 

There  is  some  reason  to  suppose,   then, . 

that,     whatever     the     present 
cgc  a    c      ^^^g  ^^y  ^^^   ^-^g  ^^^  ^^  Qj^g 

„  time     spontaneously     evolved 

on  Mars  .,  ^  -' 

upon  the  moon. 

The  second  piece  of  astronomical  evi- 
dence relevant  to  our  inquiry  is  afforded 
by  the  planet  Mars.  This,  of  course,  is 
a  much  controverted  question,  which 
cannot  receive  any  discussion  here.  It 
suffices  to  note  that  Professor  Lowell,  who 
is  admittedly  the  greatest  living  authority 
on  Mars,  has  observed  and  photographed, 
not  merely  to  his  own  satisfaction,  but 
to  that  of  an  ever  increasing  number  of 
astronomei's,  signs  of  vegetation  upon 
Mars.  I  will  say  nothing  here  as  to  the 
existence  of  intelligent  beings  there. 
That  fascinating  and  momentous  question, 
upon  which  there  will  doubtless  be  differ- 
ence of  opinion  for  some  time  to  come,  does 
not  now  concern  us.  It  is  of  quite  sufficient 
significance  for  our  present  purpose  if 
the  existence  of  merely  vegetable  life, 
and  no  more,  upon  the  planet  Mars  can 
be  demonstrated,  and  there  are  now  very 
few  astronomers  indeed  who  question 
this  demonstration,  however  chary  they 
may  be  of  going  any  further.  I  submit 
that  the  question  of  the  beginning  of  life 
upon  the  earth  should  not  be  considered 
without  reference  to  the  evidence  which 
suggests  the  spontaneous  origin  of  life 
upon  the  moon,  and  to  the  practically 
positive  demonstration  of  the  present 
existence,  with  seasonal  alternations,  as 
on  our  own  earth,  of  vegetable  life  in  the 
watered  areas  of  Mars. 

These  considerations  were  entirely  un- 
known to  the  great  controversialists  of  a 

_,     _      ^ ,  generation  ago  ;    but  there 
The  Earth  s  P  ,  i         r  .      , 
^  is  another  order  of  facts,  en- 
rum    mg  tirely  unimagined  by  them. 

Foundations  ,  .  •<,  "^  -^ ,  ' 

which  are  now  demon- 
strable and  admitted.  For  them,  or  for 
most  of  them,  the  ancient  conception 
of  matter  which  we  trace  to  Plato  was 
substantially  true ;  nay,  more.  The 
recent  work  of  the  physicists  and  chemists 
had  endowed  that  ancient  conception 
of  matter  as  gross  and  inert  and  dead 
with  a  new  concreteness   and  vividness. 


One  of  the  greatest  physicists  of  the  age, 
James  Clerk-Maxwell,  in  his  famous 
address  to  the  British  Association,  spoke 
of  atoms  as  the  "  foundation  stones  of  the 
visible  universe,  which  have  existed  since 
the  creation  unbroken  and  unworn." 
The  accepted  conception  of  an  atom  was 
that  of  a  passive  thing  ;  it  had  its  own 
inherent  shape  and  properties,  which 
were  impressed  upon  it  at  its  creation. 
It  had  "  the  stamp  of  the  manufactured 
article,"  as  Sir  John  Herschell  said,  and 
throughout  its  endless  history  it  responded 
to  and  behaved  under  the  influence  of 
external  forces  in  due  accordance  with 
its  shape  and  size.  But  it  was  unchange- 
able, inert  and  brute,  the  sport  of  its 
surroundings,  like  the  mote  in  the  sun- 
beam. 

But  to-day  we  stand  amazed  at  such 
conceptions.  We  have  learnt  that  within 
the  atoms  of  matter  there  is  a  fund  of 
energy  so  incalculably  vast  that  the  sum 
total  of  all  the  energies  previously, 
recognised,  and  now  to  be  styled  extra- 
atomic,  is  as  nothing  compared  with  it. 
This  is  a  change  indeed,  that  all  the 
energies  hitherto  known  to  us  should  be 
merely  the  overflow  trickling 
from  the  immeasurable  ocean 
of  the  intra-atomic  energy,  the 
very  existence  of  which  has 
been  formally  and  repeatedly  denied  by 
practically  all  thinkers  from  Plato  down 
to  our  own  time.  Matter  is  not  gross  and 
inert,  brute  and  dead.  The  atom,  the 
so-called  unchangeable  foundation  stone, 
is,  on  the  contrary,  itself  an  organism, 
the  theatre  of  Titanic  forces  about  which 
we  at  present  know  practically  nothing 
except  that  they  certainly  exist,  and  are 
powerful  beyond  all  our  previous  con- 
ceptions. The  atom  is  no  atom,  but  a 
microcosm  ;  it  is  no  more  the  unit  of 
inorganic  matter  than  the  cell  is  really 
the  unit  of  living  matter. 

Now  it  is  surely  evident  on  considera- 
tion, though  the  significance  of  the  change 
has  been  ignored,  that  the  whole  dis- 
cussion of  the  spontaneous  origin  or 
evolution  of  life  in  matter  takes  an  entirely 
new  shape  when  our  old  and  widely 
erroneous  conception  of  matter  is  aban- 
doned, and  a  true  one  is  substituted. 
Life  is  a  marvellous  and  characteristic 
demonstration  of  energy.  When  the 
origin  of  this  energy  in  matter  was 
formerly  discussed,  we  were  told  that  the 
constituent    parts   of   matter   contain   no 

105 


Immeasurable 

Ocean 

of  Energy 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


energy  at  all,  but  now  we  know  that  a 
quite  overwhelming  proportion  of  the 
sum  total  of  universal  energy  is  to  be 
found  there,  and  nowhere  else.  This  is 
one  of  the  most  revolutionary  advances 
in  the  whole  history  of  thought,  and  its 
full  significance  has  yet  to  be  recognised. 
There  must  also  be  added  an  essential 
to  any  future  discussion  of  this  question, 
the  extraordinary  achievement  of  synthetic 
chemistry,  of  which  Professor  Berthelot  was 
the  grand  master.  As  long  ago  as  1828  it 
was  shown  that  there  was  at  least  one 
exception  to  the  doctrine  of  the  vitalists, 
that  chemical  compounds  characteristic  of 
living  matter  cannot  be  built  up  except 
by  the  living  organism.  To-day  chemistry 
has  succeeded  in  building  up  alcohols, 
starches,  sugars,  and  even  the  forerunners 
of  the  proteids  themselves,  from  the 
inorganic  elements  in  the  laboratory,  under 
the  action  of  non-vital  forces.  This  fact 
could  not  be  reckoned  with  a  generation  ago. 
We  are  now  entitled  to  state  very 
briefly  the  sequence  of  events  which 
may  reasonably  be  imagined  as  culmin- 
ating in  the  origin  of  life  upon  the  earth 
for  the  first  time.  Whatever  we  may  hold 
as  to  the  present,  we  have  to 
recognise  that  the  origin  of  life 
for  the  first  time  constituted 
a  fact  utterly  different  in 
certain  essentials  from  any  origin  of  life 
that  may  be  expected  to  be  occurring 
to-day.  The  capital  fact  is  that  in  the 
beginning  there  was  no  organic  matter 
to  serve  as  food  material.  If  ever  there 
was  a  case  in  which  it  is  the  first  step  that 
costs,  it  is  here.  Nothing  can  be  easier 
than  to  imagine  the  spontaneous  origin  of 
Hfe  in  organic  matter  to-day,  favoured 
with  sun  and  water  and  air.  The  case  is 
far  different  when  a  primary  origin  in 
inorganic  matter  has  to  be  conceived. 
But  of  some  things  we  are  certain.  We 
are  certain,  for  instance,  that  so  long  as 
the  earth's  surface  temperature  was  above 
that  of  boiling  water,  no  life  was  possible. 
It  was  not  until  the  gaseous  water  in 
the  atmosphere  became  liquefied  by  the 
lowering  of  the  earth's  temperature  that 
the  production  of  life  became  possible. 
The  first  seas  were  seas  of  boiling  water, 
or  rather  water  infinitesimally.  below  the 
boiling  point,  and  we  may  reasonably 
suppose,  with  Buffon,  that  the  Polar  seas, 
being  the  first  to  cool,  mu.'^^t  have  provided 
the  first  "  nest  "  for  life  upon  the  earth. 
I  assume,  of  course,  that  this  essay  will  be 

106 


Can  Che- 
mistry Build 
Up  Life? 


read  in  conjunction  with  that  of  Professor 
Sollas  upon  the  formation  of  the  earth 
[page  79],  and  that  of  Dr.  Wallace  upon 
the  exquisite  adaptation  between  life  and 
the  earth  to-day  [page  91]. 

But   how  were   those   complex  organic 
bodies    formed,     especially    those    vastly 
complex    proteids    with    which    all    life 
whatsoever,  as  we  know  it,  is 
"  ^     invariably  associated  ?     Apart 
P  from  the  laboratories  of  the  syn- 

thetic chemists  of  to-day,  these 
compounds  are  always  the  products  of 
pre-existing  life,  and  yet  without  them 
there  could  be  no  pre-existing  life. 

It  is  my  belief  that  this  most  difficult 
question,  which  quite  baffles  us,  will  seem 
simple  and  straightforward  in  another 
generation,  when  science  has  devoted 
itself  on  a  large  scale  to  a  study  now 
in  its  very  infancy — I  mean  the  study  of 
those  curious  bodies  which  chemists  call 
ferments.  The  properties  of  ferments  are 
shared  both  by  the  familiar  ferments,  such 
as  trypsin  and  pepsin,  and  also  by  certain 
inorganic  substances,  such  as  the  metal 
platinurn.  Now,  though  pepsin  is  a  product 
of  living  cells,  platinum  is  certainly  riot. 
Altogether  apart  from  the  living  world 
there  are  substances  which  have  powers 
of  fermentation  ;  and  ferments  do  not  act 
exclusively,  as  is  erroneously  supposed,  in 
breaking  down  complex  compounds,  but 
also  build  them  up  from  their  constituents. 
The  powers  of  a  ferment,  moreover, 
are,  so  far  as  we  know,  inexhaustible. 
All  life  whatever  is  exercised  by  ferments, 
and  it  is  true  that  life,  chemically  con- 
sidered, is  "a  series  of  fermentations." 
Now,  there  is  quite  recent  evidence  already 
which  seems  to  show  that  certain  ferments, 
acting  in  suitable  material,  have  the  power 
of  reproducing  themselves— that  is  to  say, 
of  converting  that  material  into  their  like. 
These  facts  are  highly  suggestive,  and  it  is 
difficult  to  refrain  from  suggesting  that 
the  gap  between  living  and  lifeless  matter, 
which  seemed  so  ■  absolute  to 
ys  «ry        ^^^^.  j^j^(.gg^Qi-3^  ^j^fj  which  even 

c  *°  ""^'  ^^^    have  a   new  con- 

ception of  matter,  seems  wide 
enough,  may  yet  be  bridged  by  the 
ferments.  We  are  far  too  apt,  I  think, 
to  assume  ,  that  when  we  can  see  no 
intermediate  stage  there  were  no 
intermediate  stages,  and  thus  to  make 
difficulties  for  ourselves.  We  declare 
that  life  began  as  a  single  cell,  which  was 
the  starting-point   of    organic    evolution. 


THE    BEGINNING    OF    LIFE    ON    THE    EARTH 


I  myself  believe  rather  that  the  cell  consti- 
tutes" the  acme  of  a  vast  epoch  of  evolution, 
which  may  yet  be  reproduced  in  brief  in 
the  laboratory.  Denying  or  declining  to 
think  of  this,  the  biologist  who  knows  the 
amazing  complexity  and  intricacy  of  the 
architecture  of  the  cell  may  well  decline 
to  believe  that  such  a  thing  could  spring 
J         c  II    ^^^^    ^   single    jump    from  in- 

T.     J    *   ,  organic  matter.  We  preach  and 
a  Product  of       ^  ,  .  , ,  ^ ,    ^^    , 

_  ,  ^.  „  go  on  preachmg  that  ^lature 
Evolution?     3  J.I.-        1,      ■  J   • 

does  nothmg  by  jumps,  and  m 

the  same  breath  we  declare  that  life  began 
as  a  simple  cell.  In  another  hundred  years 
we  may  begin  to  realise  that  a  cell  in  its 
own  measure  and  on  its  own  scale  is  an 
organism,  as  complex  and  mature  a  pro- 
duct of  evolution  as  a  society,  or,  for  the 
matter  of  that,  as  the  atom  of  modern 
chemistry  ! 

But  the  reader  will  legitimately  declare 
that  so  long  as  the  spontaneous  generation 
of  life  to-day  in  the  most  favourable  cir- 
cumstances is  a  proved  impossibility,  he 
cannot  be  expected  to  accept  the  doctrine 
of  its  spontaneous  origin  in  the  past.  There 
are  signs,  however,  that  the  biologists  are 
now  beginning  to  listen  to  Dr.  Charlton 
Bastian,  the  sole  survivor  from  the  great 
controversy  of  the  'seventies,  whose  book, 
"  The  Evolution  of  Life,"  was  published 
only  a  few  months  ago.  Against  Pasteur 
and  Tyndall  and  Huxley,  Dr.  Bastian  main- 
tained that  their  experiments,  asserted  to 
be  conclusive,  were  not  conclusive — the 
facts  observed  were  certainly  facts,  but 
the  deductions  were  unwarrantable.  The 
experiments  only  proved  the  impossi- 
bility under  the  experimental  conditions. 
The  difference  is  the  difference  between 
proving  what  you  set  out  to  prove,  and 
begging  the  whole  question.  First  establish 
conditions  under  which  spontaneous  gen- 
eration is  impossible,  then  demonstrate 
its  non-occurrence  under  those  conditions, 
and  thence  infer  that  it  is  impossible  under 
any  conditions. 

_  The      student     is      right     in 

ft  ^^^  declining  to  believe  in  the 
P  spontaneous   beginning   of   life 

upon  the  earth  so  long  as  the 
possibility  of  spontaneous  generation  to- 
day is  denied,  but  there  are  not  a  few 
who  think  that  the  most  conservative 
attitude  that  can  be  adopted  is  one  of 
suspended  judgment. 

The  present  philosophic  tendency  is  un- 
doubtedly in  the  direction  of  a  return  to 
the  ancient  conception  that  matter  is  not 


without  its  own  degree  of  life,  and  that  the 
distinction  between  the  organic  and  the 
inorganic  is  a  distinction  of  degree  and 
not  radical.  Nature  does  not  admit  of  being 
sorted  into  any  of  our  puny  categories. 
As  the  facts  accumulate  they  point  more 
and  more  definitely  towards  the  opinion 
that  hylozoism,  or  the  doctrine  of  poten- 
tial life  in  all  matter,  will  be  part  of  the 
scientific  creed  of  the  future. 

Controversies  as  to  the  origin  of  life, 
judged  in  the  light  of  this  great  conception, 
seem  to  become  trivial  if  not  puerile. 
Knowing,  as  we  now  do,  that  Plato's 
conception  of  matter  was  as  false  as  it 
possibly  could  be,  and  having  had  re- 
vealed to  us  by  radio-activity  the  omni- 
presence within  the  very  atoms  of  matter, 
of  forces  incessant  and  stupendous,  we 
find  the  doctrine  of  vitalism,  however 
stated,  to  be  wholly  meaningless  ;  we  find 
that  the  gap  between  the  living  and  the 
lifeless  is  by  no  means  abysmal  or  im- 
passable. 

And  the  definition  of  life  as  self-move- 
ment seems  to  become  almost  comical, 
for  on  that  definition  surely  the  whole 
„       _  physical  universe,  the  only  per- 

ow  ong  pg|^^^^J^Q|-JQJ^J^g^chine  we  know 
E  •  t  a  ?  of,  is  itself  alive.  A  discussion  of 
this  question  can  at  the  utmost 
only  be  suggestive.  Very  few  positive 
assertions  have  been  made,  nor  can  their 
number  be  added  to,  in  reference  to  a 
question  which  is  bound  to  be  asked  :  How 
long  has  life  existed  on  the  earth  ?  The 
study  of  radium  and  its  presence  in  the 
earth's  crust  alone  suffices  to  abolish 
altogether  the  old  estimates,  and  new 
ones  cannot  yet  be  substituted.  Only  it  is 
certain  that  the  past  history  of  planetary 
life  may  be  far  longer  than  any  previous 
estimate  has  indicated.  It  now  seems  that 
the  earth  is  not  only  not  self-cooling,  but 
actually  self-heating,  and  if  on  the  older 
assumption  Lord  Kelvin  could  talk  of  a 
hundred  million  years  since,  so  to  speak, 
water  first  became  wet,  and  life,  as  we  know 
it,  possible,  who  shall  say  of  how  long 
periods  we  may  speculate  now  ?  Mean- 
while, the  glass-eyed  stare  vacantly  around 
them  and  declare  that  the  progress  of 
science  means  the  destruction  of  the 
spirit  of  wonder  and  reverence.  To  them 
we  reply  in  the  words  of  the  Earth  Spirit 
in  Goethe's  "  Faust  "  : 

"  At  the  whirring  loom  of  Time  unawed, 
I  weave  the  hving  garment  of  God." 
C.  W.  Saleeby 
107 


THE  MASTERY  OF  THE  EARTH 

AND  HOW  MAN  OBTAINED  IT 

BY    DR.    ARCHDALL    REID 


ALL  the  world— at  any  rate,  all  that  part 
of  the  world  which  is  acquainted 
with  the  facts — is  now  agreed  that  man 
is  a  product  of  evolution,  and  that  his 
remote  ancestors  were  of  different  bodily 
make  and  shape,  and  of  different  mental 
type  and  calibre,  from  their  late  descend- 
ants. No  study  of  human  kind  can  be  com- 
prehensive that  does  not  include  a  survey 
of  the  mode  by  which  the  faculties  that 
have  given  man  the  mastery  of  the  earth 
were  evolved. 

A  history  of  his  evolution,  based,  like 
a  pohtical  history,  on  episodes,  cannot,  of 
course,  be  written.  But  man  is  a  bundle 
of  parts  and  capabihties.  By  comparing 
the  civilised  being  with  the  savage  and  the 
savage  with  lower  animals,  we  are  able  to 
trace,  in  many  important  particulars  at 
least,  his  natural  history  with  a  degree  of 
certainty  to  which,  I  think,  no  political 
history  can  aspire.  As  our  comprehension 
of  adult  man  is  helped  by  a 
We  Know  knowledge  of  the  development 
the  Present    „r  ,i i  -ij    ^^  ^„^  „„^^^c-+o»i^ 


by  the  Past 


of  the  child,  so  our  understand- 
ing of  our  species  is  aided  by  a 
study  of  its  past.  Armed  with  some  clear 
conceptions  of  what  man  was,  and  is,  we 
shall  be  the  better  fitted  to  investigate  social 
and  political  change,  and  to  perceive  how  it 
happens  that  while  some  nations  have 
inherited  the  earth  and  the  fruits  thereof, 
others  have  stagnated  or  fallen  into  decay. 
At  a  certain  stage  in  his  development 
the  caterpiUar  builds  himself  a  cocoon. 
His  dwelling  is  a  wonderful  structure,  but 
from  our  human  point  of  view  the  re- 
markable thing  is  that  he  does  not  learn 
to  build  it.  He  may  never  have  seen  a 
cocoon  before,  and  he  constructs  only  one 
in  his  life.  Yet  his  work  is  perfect,  or  at 
least  very  excellent,  and  it  is  as  good  in 
its  beginnings  as  in  its  endings.  Evidently 
he  (  -ves  nothing  to  experience,  but  is 
imi^elled  and  guided  throughout  by  a 
faculty  which  we  term  instinct.  An  instinct 
may  be  defined  as  an  innate,  inherited 
impulse,  an  inclination  to  do  a  certain 
definite  act,  the  instinctive  act,  on  receipt 

io8 


of  a  certain  definite  stimulus  or  incitement 
to  action.  In  the  case  of  the  caterpillar 
the  stimulus  appears  to  be  the  sight  at  the 
proper  time  of  a  suitable  spot  in  which  to 
build  a  cocoon.  Since  this  particular  impulse 
does  not  appear  at  the  beginning  of  con- 
scious life,  it  is  termed  a  deferred  instinct. 
Man,  on  the  other  hand,  cannot  build 
his  house  unless  he  first  learns 
ow     an      j^^^^  ^^  build.   He  depends,  not 

Learns  by  •      i-       j_    i      ^ 

_        .on  mstmct,  but  on  experience. 

Experience    ^,  c        ^^         ^  c 

Ihe      faculty     by     means     of 

which  experience  is  stored  in  the  mind  is 
memory.  The  faculty  by  means  of  which 
we  use  stored  experience  to  guide  present 
or  future  conduct  is  intelligence.  When 
the  contents  of  memory  are  very  vast, 
and  the  processes  of  thought  by  which 
they  are  utilised  comparatively  difficult 
and  complex,  intelligence  is  termed  reason. 
Intelligence  and  reason  depend,  therefore, 
on  memory,  on  ability  to  learn,  on 
capacity  to  profit  by  experience.  Memory 
is  not  the  whole  of  intelligence,  but  it  is  the 
basis  of  it.  Without  memory  there  could 
be  feeling  and  emotion,  but  no  thought,  for 
the  materials  of  thought  would  be  lacking. 
We  always  measure  the  intelligence  of  an 
animal  by  its  power  of  profiting  by  ex- 
perience. Thus,  a  cat  is  more  intelligent 
than  a  rabbit  because  it  can  learn  more ; 
a  dog,  for  the  same  reason,  is  still  more  in- 
telligent. A  purely  instinctive  animal, 
one  that  has  no  memory,  can  have  no  con- 
ception of  its  past,  and  therefore  no  idea 
of  its  future.  It  lives  wholly  in  the  im- 
mediate present  ;  feeling,  but  not  think- 
ing. It  acts  entirely  on  inclina- 
Instinct  tion,  not  on  reflection.  It  makes 
in  Place  of  pj-Q^.j^ion  fo^  the  future,  not 
Memory  ^^^-^j^  ^^^  notion  of  providing, 
but  simply  because  it  has  an  impulse 
to  a  certain  course  of  action,  the  per- 
formance of  which  gives  it  pleasure  of  the 
kind  a  child  derives  from  playing  or  eating, 
and  with  the  ultimate  result  of  which  it 
is  no  more  consciously  concerned  than  a 
child.  If  a  caterpillar  sheltered  ii  a  hole 
with  the  idea,  founded  on  past  experience, 


HOW    MAN    OBTAINED    THE    MASTERY    OF    THE    EARTH 


The  Basis 
of  Rational 
Action 


of  avoiding  danger,  his  action  would  be 
intelligent.  If,  appealing  to  a  memory  in 
which  a  great  number  of  complex  expe- 
riences were  stored,  he  took  thought  and 
designed  himself  a  shelter  in 
which  provision  was  made  for 
all  sorts  of  remembered  dangers, 
his  action  would  be  rational. 
But  if,  making  no  appeal  to  the  past 
nor  taking  thought  for  the  future,  he 
builds  only  because  impelled  by  an 
innate  impulse,  then,  no  matter  how 
elaborate  the  edifice  he  rears,  his  action 
is  instinctive. 

Animals  low  in  the  scale  of  life — for 
example,  most  insects — appear  incapable 
of  learning.  But  often  they  are  won- 
derfully equipped  by  instinct.  The  de- 
tails of  the  behaviour  of  a  small  beetle, 
as  quoted  from  Professor  Lloyd  Morgan, 
may  not  have  been  quite  correctly  ascer- 
tained, but  the}^  are  sufficiently  accurate 
for  our  purpose. 

A  certain  beetle  (Sitaris)  lays  its  eggs  at  the 
entrance  of  the  galleries  excavated  by  a  kind  of 
bee  (Anthophora),  each  gallery  leading  to  a  cell. 
The  young  larvae  are  hatched  as  active  little 
insects,  with  six  legs,  two  long  antenna?,  and 
four  eyes,  very  different  from  the  larvae  of  other 
beetles.  They  emerge  from  the  egg  in  the  autumn, 
and  remain  in  a  sluggish  condition  till  the  spring. 
At  that  time  (in  April)  the  drones  of  the  bee 
emerge  from  the  pupae,  and  as  they  pass  out 
through  the  gallery  the  Sitaris  larvae  fasten  upon 
them.  There  they  remain  till  the  nuptial  flight 
of  the  Anthophora,  when  the  larva  passes  from 
the  male  to  the  female  bee.  Then  again  they  wait 
their  chance.  The  moment  the  bee  lays  an  egg, 
the  Sitaris  larva  springs  upon  it.  Even  while  the 
poor  mother  is  carefully  fastening  up  her  cell, 
her  mortal  enemy  is  beginning  to  devour  her 
offspring,  for  the  egg  of  the  Anthophora  serves 
not  only  as  a  raft,  but  as  a  repast.  The  honey, 
which  is  enough  for  either,  would  be  too  little 
for  both,  and  the  Sitaris,  therefore,  at  its  first 
meal,  relieves  itself  from  its  only  rival.  After 
eight  days  the  egg  is  consumed,  and  on  the  empty 
shell  the  Sitaris  undergoes  its  first  transformation, 
and  makes  its  appearance  in  a  very  different 
form.  ...  It  changes  into  a  white,  fleshy 
grub,  so  organised  as  to  float  on  the  surface  of  the 
honey,  with  the  mouth  beneath  and  the  spiracles 
above  the  surface.  ...  In  this  state  it  re- 
mains until  the  honey  is  consumed,  and,  after 
some  further  metamorphoses,  develops  into  a 
perfect  beetle  in  August. 

The  beetle  has  sense  organs  ;  therefore 
she  feels.  But  we  have  no 
reason  to  suppose  that  she 
remembers  or  thinks.  Memory 
would  be  of  little  use  to  her  ; 
parsimonious  Nature  bestows 
httle  or  none.  Cast  adrift  in  a  hostile 
world,  she  must  come  into  existence 
ready  armed  by  instinct  for  the  battle  of 


Wonderful 
Instinct  of 
the  Beetle 

therefore 


life.  She  has  no  time  to  learn,  and  during 
the  rapid  and  strange  changes  in  her 
career  has  little  opportunity  of  acquiring 
knowledge  that  could  beneficially  guide 
her  future  conduct.  Since  memory  and 
its  corollary  reflection  are  most  developed 
in  the  highest  animals,  and  are  impercep- 
tible m  the  lower,  they  are  clearly  later 
and  higher  products  of  evolution  than 
instinct. 

Family  life  is  a  product  of  memory, 
for  the  mate  and  offspring  are  r<j-cognised  ; 
therefore  it  always  implies  some  degree 
of  intelligence.  The  young  are  watched 
and  protected,  and  taught  by  the  higher 
animals.  Opportunities  are  thus  afforded 
of  learning  about  the  world,  and  more 
particularly  of  acquiring  the  traditions, 
the  stored  experiences,  of  the  race.  With 
the  opportunity  to  profit  by  experience 
comes  the  ability  to  profit  by  it,  and  with 
the  latter  a  gradual  decay  of  instinct. 
Intelligence  is  substituted,  more  or  less, 
for  unthinking  impulse.  All  the  instincts 
are  not  lost,  but  in  the  higher  animals 
we  find  no  such  elaborate  innate  impulses 
as  in  the  lower.  "  Sitaris  "  is  able  to  fend 
for  herself  from  the  first ;  but 
just  in  proportion  as  animals 
are  highly  placed  in  the  scale 
of  life,  so  they  are  helpless 
at  the  beginnings  of  consciousness,  but 
correspondingly  capable  later.  A  young 
pig  can  run  as  soon  as  it  is  born,  but  the 
acquirements  of  the  most  learned  pig 
are  small  compared  to  that  of  a  dog, 
which,  though  more  helpless  than  the  pig 
at  birth,  is  so  teachable  that  he  becomes 
the  companion  of  man.  Our  domestic 
animals  are  all  teachable,  otherwise  we 
could  not  tame  them. 

Of  living  beings  man  is  by  far  the  most 
helpless  at  birth.  He  cannot  even  seek 
the  breast.  In  him  instinct  is  at  its 
minimum.  For  him  more  than  any  other 
animal  prolonged  and  elaborate  tuition 
is  necessary  ;  but  so  vast  is  his  memory, 
and  so  great  his  power  of  utilising  its 
stored  experience,  that  in  later  life  he  is 
beyond  comparison  the  most  capable  of 
the  inhabitants  of  the  earth.  Compare 
what  even  a  dull  man  knows,  including 
the  words  of  a  language  and  its  inflections 
and  articulations,  with  what  is  acquired  by 
the  cleverest  dog,  and  the  immensity  of 
the  difference  is  at  once  apparent.  We 
may  take  a  solitary  frog  and  rear  him 
from  the  egg  in  an  aquarium.  If,  subse- 
quently, we  remove  him  to  a  pond,   he 

109 


Man's 

Helplessness 
at  Birth 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


will  take  his  place  with  his  fellows  at  once. 
He  has  little,  if  anything,  to  learn.  In- 
stinctively he  knows  his  food,  and  how 
to  seek  it ;  his  enemies  and  rivals,  and 
how  to  escape  or  light  them  ;  his  mate, 
and  how  to  deal  with  her  ;  and  she  knows 
how  to  dispose  of  her  eggs.  But  how 
forlorn  and  helpless  would  be  a  man 
reared  from  infancy  in  a  dark  cell  out  of 
sight  and  sound  of  his  kind,  and  then 
turned  into  a  world  where  his  experienced 
fellows  struggle  for  existence  ! 

Traditional  knowledge — knowledge,  that 
is,  imparted  by  one  generation  to  the  next 
— is  common  enough  amongst  the  higher 
of  the  lower  animals,  and  forms  no 
inconsiderable  part  of  their  mental  equip- 
ment. Thus  we  may  see  the  hen  teaching 
her  chickens  how  to  seek  food,  and  the 
cat  instructing  her  kitten  how  to  ambush 
mice.  Birds  and  mammals  inhabiting 
desert  islands  have  none  of  that  fear  of 
man  which  in  our  country  they  acquire 
from  dire  experience.  We  have  a  saying, 
"  as  wild  as  a  hawk "  ;  but  Darwin 
relates  how  he  almost  pushed  a  hawk 
from  its  perch  with  his  gun  in  the  Gala- 

17.       •   ^t  pagos  Islands.  Round  our  coasts 

Fear  IS  the  Ii  i  ■    i  ^■      ^ 

„      ,^    -  the   sea-birds   are   exceedmgly 

Result  of  ,  .  11  ..  r      J 

£        .  shy ;    m   a  harbor  they  teed 

xpenence   ^^^^    ^j^g     hand.       Formerly 

the  Arctic  seals,  impelled  by  fear  of  bears, 
inhabited  the  outer  margin  of  the  floes  ; 
at  the  present  day  they  have  retreated 
from  the  more  dangerous  neighbourhood 
of  man  to  the  landward  edge.  Antarctic 
seals,  harried  by  the  great  carnivora  of 
the  ocean,  are  watchful  in  the  water ; 
on  land  or  on  the  surface  of  the  ice,  where 
till  lately  they  met  no  danger,  they  may 
be  slaughtered  like  sheep  in  a  shambles. 
They  are  capable  of  profiting  by  experi- 
ence ;  but  they  are  slow  to  learn,  and  can 
acquire  but  little.  Judged  by  our  human 
standard,  they  are  very  stupid.  The  means 
of  escape  adopted  by  Arctic  seals,  and 
the  means  of  capturing  them,  the  ships  and 
f^uns  adopted  by  man,  furnish  a  measure 
of  the  intellectual  difference. 

When  animals  are  social,  and  so  have 
the  opportunity  of  learning,  not  only 
from  their  parents,  but  from  other  mem- 
bers of  the  species,  the  power  of  making 
useful  mental  acquirements  is  corre- 
spondingly great.  It  reaches  a  remarkable 
degree  of  development  even  amongst 
insects,  some  species  of  which  live 
together  in  great  communities.  Young 
ants,  for  example,  are  tended  with  anxious 

no 


care.  It  is  said  that  they  are  led  about 
the  nest  and  instructed  by  older  indi- 
viduals. They  are  reported  to  be  playful. 
Most  significant  of  all  is  the  fact  that 
some  species  have  the  habit  of  capturing 
slaves  belonging  to  other  species,  which 
they  take  as  pupse,  never  as  adult  ants, 
and  to  whom,  as  they  develop,  they  teach 
their   duties.     The   slaves   are 


Slavery 

in  the  World 


neuter  individuals,  and  have 
o7hrsrct's'""°  offspring,  the  supply  being 
maintained  by  fresh  captures. 
It  follows  that  the  slaves  must  learn  their 
work,  and  therefore  that  their  performance 
of  it  is  not  instinctive,  but  intelligent. 

It  is  a  fair  inference  that  many  of  the 
so-called  instincts  of  ants,  are  really 
acquired  habits,  bits  of  knowledge  and 
ways  of  thinking  and  acting  which  are 
handed  down  from  one  generation  to  the 
next,  not  by  actual  inheritance,  but 
traditionally  and  educationally,  just  as 
children  receive  from  us  language,  or 
religion,  or  a  trade.  Indeed,  there  is 
reason  to  believe  that  the  power  of  making 
mental  acquirements  has  evolved  to  a 
greater  degree  in  the  favourable  environ- 
ment of  the  ant-nest  than  among  any  other 
species  except  man. 

The  instincts  of  man,  though  compara- 
tively few  and  simple,  are  yet  essential 
to  his  existence.  He  has  the  instinct  of 
hunger  and  the  instinctive  recognition 
of  food  as  food,  the  instincts  to  sleep 
periodically,  to  rest  when  tired,  and  to 
sport  when  rested,  the  instincts  of  curiosity 
and  imitativeness,  and  the  deferred  in- 
stincts of  sexual  and  parental  love,  and 
perhaps  one  or  two  others.  All  these  innate 
impulses  he  shares  with  the  lower  animals, 
but  those  which  impel  him  to  store  and 
use  his  vaster  memory  are  more  developed 
in  him  than  in  any  other  type.  Thus  the 
instinct  of  sport  urges  him,  not  only  to 
develop  his  limbs,  but,  through  experience, 
to  acquire  dexterity  and  much  besides. 
The  httle  girl  turns  naturally  to  her  doll, 
,  which  she  handles  as  she  will 

Es'lential        ^^^  ^^^^^      '^^^  P^^^  °^   ^  ^^^ 
ssen  la        ^^  naturally  involves  contests. 
Instincts  1  •   1    r         1     J         J.-U 

which  foreshadow  the  grimmer 

battles  of  adult  life.   As  he  grows  older  the 

character  of  his  sport  changes.    More  and 

more  it  becomes  an  appeal  to  the  wits, 

an  appeal  to  wider  experience  and  a  means 

of  adding  to  it. 

The  higher  amongst  the  lower  animals 

also  have   their  sports,   which,   in   every 

instance,  are  adapted  to  fit  the  members 


HOW    MAN    OBTAINED    THE    MASTERY    OF    THE    EARTH 


of  the  species  for  the  future  business  of  Hfe. 
Compare,  for  example,  the  ambush  and 
pounce  of  the  kitten,  the  ardent  chase  and 
overthrow  of  the  puppy,  and  the  chmbing 
prochvities  of  the  kid.  As  a  general  rule, 
in  proportion  as  an  animal  is  capable  of 
becoming  intelligent,  and  as  long  as  it  is  so 
capable,   it  is  inclined   to  sport.      A  cat 

loses  the  desire  early  in  life, 
Pla  Fits  it  ^  ^^^  retains  it  to  the  end. 
r  ^Ti.  r^/  A  child's  play,  therefore, 
for  the  Future     •  ■     t      .•  r 

IS    no    mdication    of    mere 

frivolity.  It  is  the  outward  and  visible  sign 
of  an  eager  and  splendidly  directed  mental 
activity.  Curiosity  also  prompts  the  child 
to  store  its  memory.  Imitativeness  impels 
him  to  acquire  those  mental  traits  which 
enabled  his  progenitors  to  survive  in  their 
world.  Parental  love  prompts  to  the  care 
and  instruction  of  offspring.  Very  illu- 
minating and  beautiful  is  the  instinctive 
delight  of  some  dull  and  careworn  mother 
in  babyish  play  with  her  infant,  and 
her  joy  when  it  first  "takes  notice,"  and 
in  its  earliest  beginnings  of  speech  and 
locomotion. 

Every  animal  species  is  fitted  by  its 
structures  and  their  associated  faculties 
to  its  particular  place  in  Nature.  In  some 
cases  it  holds  its  own  largely  through  the 
evolution  of  some  one  structure  or  group 
of  structures.  Thus,  the  bat  is  especially 
distinguished  by  the  great  development 
of  its  fingers  and  of  the  web  between 
them,  and  the  elephant  by  its  trunk. 
The  principal  distinguishing  physical  pecu- 
liarity of  man  is  the  enormous  relative 
size  in  him  of  that  upper  part  of  the  verte- 
brate brain  which  is  termed  the  cerebrum, 
and,  we  have  every  reason  to  believe, 
constitutes  the  organ  of  memory  and 
thought. 

Associated  in  a  special  way  with  his 
great  brain  are  his  organs  of  speech  and 
manipulation.  These  three  structures,  the 
brain,  the  vocal  apparatus,  and  the  hand, 
undoubtedly  underwent  concurrent  evolu- 
tion by  the  constant  survival, 
during  a  period  of  intense  com- 
petition, of  those  individuals 
who  were  naturally  the  best 
capable  of  receiving  and  storing  experience, 
of  using  it  for  the  intelligent  manipulation 
of  objects,  and  of  communicating  it  to 
their  fellows  and  descendants  through  the 
medium  of  speech.  Even  the  highest  of  the 
lower  animals  are  able  to  learn  from  one 
another  only  by  example  or  through  such 
very   elementary    verbal    signs    as   calls, 


Evolution 
of  Man's 
Powers 


growls,  or  cries  of  alarm,  which  express  no 
more  than  simple  emotions. 

Their  traditional  knowledge,  therefore, 
is  as  nothing  compared  with  that  of 
man,  who  by  means  of  articulated  speech 
communicates  not  only  information  con- 
cerning sense  impressions  and  emotions, 
but  complex  items  of  knowledge  and 
processes  of  thought  which  have  been 
garnered,  elaborated,  and  systematised 
during  tens  of  thousands  of  years  by 
millions  of  predecessors.  Without  speech, 
or  some  such  method  of  communicating 
abstruse  information,  his  great  brain  would 
be  useless.  But  knowledge  and  powers  of 
thought  are  of  no  avail  unless  they  can  be 
translated  into  action  ;  and  for  this  the 
hands  are  necessary.  To  set  free  the  fore 
limbs,  which  had  hitherto  been  organs  of 
locomotion,  for  their  new  function  of 
manipulation,  man  became  a  biped,  and 
assumed  the  erect  posture — by  no  conscious 
effort,  however,  but  solely  by  the  survival 
of  the  fittest  in  each  generation. 

Savage  man,  then,  differs  from  the  lower 

animals  in  that  he  has  a  larger  brain,  a 

more    capacious    memory,     and    greater 

p  powers  of  utilising  and  commu- 

Jj!"'^*''"    nicating  its  contents.     Modern 

IS  ay  o  ^^^  differs  from  ancient  man 
because  he  is  the  heir  of  longer 
experience.  Civilised  man  differs  from  the 
savage  chiefly  in  that  he  has  invented  and 
more  or  less  perfected  certain  artiC-cial 
aids  to  speech,  written  symbols  by  means  of 
which  he  is  able  to  store  in  an  available 
form  knowledge  immensely  more  abstruse 
and  voluminous  than  would  otherwise  be 
possible.  His  books  are  artificial  memories 
and  vehicles  of  communication  of  un- 
limited capacity  and  unerring  accuracy. 
Moreover,  by  means  of  these  symbols 
he  is  able,  as  in  the  mathematics,  to  per- 
form feats  of  thinking  quite  beyond  the 
powers  of  his  unaided  mind  ;  just  as  by 
means  of  machinery  and  other  mechanical 
contrivances  he  is  able  to  perform  physical 
feats  beyond  the  unaided  powers  of  his 
body. 

To  memory,  then,  is  due  the  advance  of 
the  savage  beyond  the  lower  animal ;  to 
tradition,  the  child  of  memory,  the  advance 
of  modern  man  beyond  ancient  man  ;  to 
tradition  stored  in  books  the  advance  of 
civilised  men  beyond  the  savage.  To 
written  symbols  are  due  also  man's  vast 
powers  for  future  advance.  The  brute, 
the  mammoth,  the  mastodon,  the  whale, 
the  elephant,  and  the  tiger,  became  ever 

III 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


more  and  more  helpless  in  the  presence 
of  a  knowledge  and  an  mgenuity  that 
gathered  with  the  rolling  years,  and, 
though  accumulated  for  ages,  were  yet 
relati\'ely  new  things  in  this  enormously 
old  world. 

Low  animals,  in  proportion  as  they  lack 
memory,  move  in  a  narrow,  instinctive 
groove.  Their  mental  traits  are  all  in- 
herited, and  therefore  each  individual 
follows  exactly  in  the  footsteps  of  its  pre- 
decessor. Since  they  cannot  learn,  they 
cannot  adapt  themselves  to  circumstances. 
Removed  from  the  ancestral  environment 
they  perish.  Cast  in  a  rigid,  inexpansive 
mould,  every  individual  resembles  every 
other  of  the  same  species,  as  much  mentally 
as  physically. 

It  is  different  Vv'ith  man.  He  is  pre- 
eminently the  educable,  the  reflective, 
the  adaptive  animal.  Since  the  experi- 
ences of  no  two  men  are  quite  similar, 
they  differ  in  knowledge,  ideas,  and 
aspi  ations,  and,  therefore,  none  are  very 
closely  alike  mentally.  The  child  does  not 
follow  exactly  in  the  footsteps  of  the 
parent.  So  great  is  human  adaptability 
that,  though  the  mind  of  the 

an  can  savage  differs  immensely  in  all 
Revert  to  j     ■      ^-      •  j         '  r 

„  except  instmct  and   power  of 

avagcry  learning  from  that  of  the  civil- 
ised man,  yet,  were  the  child  of  the  latter 
trained  from  birth  by  the  former,  he  could 
not  be  other  than  a  savage. 

On  the  other  hand,  utter  savages — for 
example,  the  Macries  of  New  Zealand — 
have  passed  in  a  single  generation  from 
barbarism  to  civilisation.  The  average 
individual  amongst  us  may  be  trained  to 
fill  the  role  of  a  beggar  or  a  king,  a  scientist 
or  a  monk,  a  thief  or  a  legislator.  He  is 
able  to  dwell  in  ihe  Tropics  or  in  the  Arctic, 
in  the  town  or  in  the  wild.  Memory,  know- 
ledge, intelligence,  adaptability,  are  all 
links  in  a  single  chain  of  efficiency. 

Memory  is  of  two  sorts,  conscious  and 
unconscious.  The  conscious  memory 
contains  experiences  which  can  be  re- 
collected, such  as  the  words  of  a  language 
or  the  sights  we  have  seen.  The  uncon- 
scious memory  contains  impressions  which 
cannot  be  recalled  to  mind,  but  which 
are  none  the  less  important.  Thus,  we 
learn  to  use  our  limbs,  a  process  which 
involves  a  precise  but  quite  unconscious 
adjustment  of  the  actions  of  numerous 
nerves  and  muscles,  the  very  names  and 
existences  of  which  are  known  only  to  the 
anatomist.     So,  also,  in  youth  we  uncon- 

IT2 


Dawn  of 

Human 
Life 


sciously  imitate  our  fellows,  adopting  in 
great  measure  their  mental  tones  and 
attitudes  without  knowing  how  or  when 
we  were  influenced.  Much,  too,  that  was 
once  capable  of  being  recalled  is  added  to 
that  hidden  store,  and,  though  apparently 
lost,  remains  potent  for  good  or  evil.  Our 
minds  are  like  floating  icebergs,  of  which 
the  visible  part  is  but  a  frac- 
tion of  the  whole,  and  are 
moved  by  deep  currents  in  a 
seemingly  unaccountable  way. 
At  birth  Ihe  mind  of  a  child,  unlike  that 
of  a  beetle,  is  practically  blank.  Sights  and 
sounds  and  the  other  feelings  convey 
no  meanings  to  it.  But  soon  the  messages 
sent  by  the  sensation  are  understood. 
In  a  few  weeks  the  child  evolves  order  out 
of  chaos,  and  comprehends  to  a  wonderful 
degree  the  world  around  it.  It  learns  to 
move  its  muscles  in  a  purposeful  way,  and 
in  a  year  or  two  is  able  to  walk  and  sj^eak  a 
language,  and  do  a  vast  deal  more  besides. 
In  these  early  years,  the  period  of  man's 
greatest  mental  activity,  are  made  his 
most  valuable  and  indispensable  acquire- 
ments. But  as  he  becomes  more  and  more 
completely  equipped  for  the  battle  of  life, 
his  powers  of  adding  to  the  store  slowly 
decline.  In  adult  life  the  gains  are  balanced 
by  the  losses.  In  old  age  the  losses  exceed 
the  gains.  Compare  the  perfection  with 
which  the  young  acquire  the  manners  of 
society,  and  every  accent,  inflection,  and 
intonation  of  a  language,  with  the  im- 
perfections displayed  when  learning  is 
undertaken  later. 

We  learn  to  do  new  things,  acquire  new 
knowledge,  and  think  new  thoughts  with 
toil.  But  practice  brings  facility.  In  the 
end  we  perform  with  ease  that  which  was 
acquired  with  difficulty.  We  cannot, 
however,  unlearn  as  we  learnt,  by  an  act  of 
will.  The  facihty  lingers,  and,  as  a  con- 
sequence, our  actions  and  thoughts,  our 
mental  attitudes,  our  whole  outlook  on 
life  becomes  more  or  less  automatic  and 

„  , .  stereotyped.     In  other  words, 

Habits  arc  •               ,                      ,    i      ; 

,    .    ,.  our  acquirements  come  at  last 

Imitation  ,                    ui      •      i.        .l             i 

,    ,.    ^  to  resemble  instmcts,  and  are 

Instincts  r.                                   11 

often  so  misnamed,  as  when  a 

boy  who  has  learned  to  dodge  is  said  to 
avoid  a  blow  instinctively.  A  being  from 
another  planet  who  for  the  first  time  saw 
a  man  walking  or  cycling  could  not  distin- 
guish the  nature  of  these  acquirements  from 
such  instinctive  movements  as  the  running 
or  flying  of  an  insect.  The  patriotism  of  a 
Spartan  or  a  Japanese  differs  from  that  of 


HOW    MAN    OBTAINED    THE    MASTERY    OF    THE    EARTH 


a  bee  only  in  its  mode  of  origin.    In  brief, 

the  low  animal  is  a  creature  of  instincts, 

the  man  is  a  creature  of  habits,  which  are 

nothing  other  than  imitation  instincts. 

A  principal  function,  then,  of  our  faculty 

of    making  mental  acquirements,  of    our 

conscious  and  unconscious  memories,  is  to 

supply  us  with  .those  automatic  ways  of 

„  , .  .,  thinking  and  acting  which  are 
Mankind  s  u   i.-^    ^         r  .l        .l 

c  k  *•.  .       our    substitutes    tor   instmcts. 

oubstitutes     r\ 

f  I  ..  ,  Uur  conscious  memories  sup- 
lor  Instinct       ,  .,,  ,  ,        ^  , 

ply    us    with  our   stereotyped 

mental  attitudes — desires,  beliefs,  aspira- 
tions, habitual  way  of  thinking,  and  so 
forth.  Our  unconscious  memories  supply 
our  stereotyped  ways  of  acting — the  auto- 
matic ways  of  acting  we  have  just  con- 
sidered. It  is  a  principal  business  of  our 
lives  to  acquire  them ;  but,  though  a  great 
advantage  is  thus  gained,  one  almost  as 
great  is  lost.  We  act  and  think  more 
quickly  in  familiar  situations,  but  in  pro- 
portion as  we  grow  older  we  lose  our 
splendid  human  capacity  for  learning. 
Beyond  the  verge  of  our  imitation  instincts 
spreads  a  domain,  very  wide  in  the  infant, 
but  narrowing  as  we  pass  towards  old  age, 
which  is  the  real  realm  of  the  active 
intellect.  Here,  where  thoughts  and  actions 
are  not  yet  stereotyped,  memory  gathers 
fresh  harvests,  imagination  plays,  and 
reason  ponders.  Here  man  is  a  rational 
being  in  the  strict  sense  of  the  word. 

A  little  thought  renders  it  evident  that 
a  feeble-minded  person,  an  idiot,  or  an  im- 
becile, is  always  one  with  a  defective 
memory.  He  is  unable  to  profit  like  the 
normal  individual  from  experience.  The 
truth  that  the  higher  faculties  are  more 
often  absent  in  the  feeble-minded  than 
the  lower  is  due  entirely  to  the  fact  that 
they  can  be  acquired  only  by  people 
whose  receptive  powers  are  well  developed. 
In  effect  and  in  fact  the  feeble-minded 
person  is  an  instance  of  reversion  to  a 
prehuman  mental  state.  Judged  by  the 
human  standard,  every  monkey  is  an 
idiot.  But  the  reversion  is 
*^  not  complete,  for,    though  the 

„  imbecile  loses  some  part  of  his 

Memory  .  r  .■         ^ 

power  01  profiting  by  experi- 
ence, he  regains  no  part  of  the  lost  power 
of  being  guided  by  instinct.  Therefore 
he  is  correspondingly  helpless  as  com- 
pared with  a  lower  animal. 

Owing  to  the  constitution  of  the  human 
mind,  some  decay  of  the  faculty  of  profiting 
by  experience  accompanies  advancing  age. 
But  it  need  seldom  be  so  great  as  it  usually 

•  8 


is,  and  never  so  great  as  it  often  is.  Cer- 
tain mental  attitudes,  certain  systems  of 
education,  certain  environments,  leave 
the  mind  of  the  man  almost  as  open  as 
that  of  a  little  child  ;  others  inflict  on  it 
premature  senility.  An  Aristotle  or  a 
Darwin  learns  to  the  last  year  of  his  long 
life  ;  a  Mohammedan  or  a  Tibetan  ecclesias- 
tic is  old  before  he  has  ceased  to  be  young. 
Convinced  that  pestilence  is  due  directly 
to  the  wrath  of  God,  he  scorns  the  notion 
that  sanitation  can  be  right  or  useful ; 
believing  that  the  earth  is  fiat,  no  evidence 
will  convince  him  that  it  is  round  ;  holding 
his  sacred  religion  with  a  steadfast  faith, 
he  will  murder  the  heretic  rather  than  think 
out  his  propositions. 

But  habits  of  stupidity  are  not  confined 
to  particular  regions  of  thought.  Becoming 
almost  as  incapable  of  mental  change  as 
a  beetle,  a  man  may  undergo  an  arrest  of 
mental  development  which  differs  from 
that  of  the  idiot  only  because  it  occurs 
later  in  life,  is  less  complete,  and  is 
acquired,  not  innate.  In  his  ordinary 
surroundings  he  appears  a  normal  person  ; 
but  placed  among  people  of  more  open 
mind,   his   brute-like  inability 

t^M°^j  ^  to  learn  suggests  sharply  the 
Minds  of  ,  ,  °°  ,  , ,        ^r-^  ,  , 

w  ¥>•«  resemblance  to  the  feeble- 
Men  Differ         .  . 

minded  child.     Let  us  sum  up. 

Man  has  conquered  the  earth  because  he 
is  pre-eminently  the  educable,  the  adap- 
tive animal.  His  educability — indeed,  his 
whole  thinking  capacity  —  depends  on 
his  memory.  He  has  few  instincts,  a 
fact  which  increases  his  mental  ductility  ; 
but  one  of  the  most  important  of  his 
instincts  is  imitativeness,  which  impels 
him  to  copy  not  only  such  obvious 
things  as  the  speech  of  his  predecessors, 
but  their  mental  attitudes  as  well.  In 
this  way  not  only  the  actual  knowledge 
and  beliefs  but  also  the  habits  of  thought 
of  one  generation  are  handed  on  to  the 
next.  Apart  from  a  few  instincts  which  are 
more  active  in  the  child  than  in  the  adult, 
and  two  or  three  others  whose  appearance 
is  deferred  till  later  life,  the  whole  mental 
difference  between  the  child  and  the  adult 
lies  in  the  fact  that  the  former  has  a  great 
memory  in  the  sense  that  it  is  very  capable 
of  storing  experience,  whereas  the  latter 
has  a  great  memory  in  the  sense  that  it  has 
already  stored  much  experience.  As  parent 
to  child,  so  one  racial  generation  hands 
on  its  acquirements  to  the  next,  but  with 
greater  certainty ;  for  the  parent  is  not 
the  only  influence  in  the  life  of  the  child, 

113 


HISTORY    OF    THE     WORLD 


who  imitates  many  other  people,  some- 
times more  closely  than  the  parent ; 
whereas,  since  few  individuals  travel 
during  youth,  the  young  are  seldom 
influenced  by  others  than  by  members  of 
their  own  race.  Except  in  times  of  great 
change,  therefore,  racial  generations  re- 
semble one  another  even  more  closely  than 
parents  and  children. 

Like  individuals,  races  differ  in  their 
mental  characteristics.  The  English  have 
one  set  of  characters,  the  Japanese  another, 
and  the  Russians  a  third.  The  problem 
of  the  extent  to  which  these  characters 
are  inborn  or  acquired  is  very  important 
to  the  student  of  history.  Accordingly 
as  we  believe  they  are  the  one  or  the 
other  we  are  driven  to  accept  one  or  other 
of  two  very  different  readings  of  the  past. 

Are    races,    then,    brave    or    cowardly, 

energetic     or    slothful,     enlightened     or 

savage,  and    so  forth,   by  nature   or   by 

training  ?      Are  the   qualities    that   have 

enabled    some    races    to     flourish,    while 

others    are     decadent,     transmitted      as 

instincts  or  handed  on,  as  knowledge  is  ? 

The  reader  has  now  materials  of  a  kind 

,  „  not  usually  found  in  historical 

Influences  ,  i,-   i.     j.      r         j 

/^k-ij-    works    on   which    to  found   a 

in  &  Child  s    •     J  i        TT  J.    1^ 

Life  judgment.     He  must   bear  m 

mind  that,  while  an  American 
infant  reared  by  cannibals  would  retain 
the  bodily  characteristics  of  his  race 
mentally,  he  could  not  be  other  than 
a  savage.  He  must  remember  also  that 
some  races  have  altered  their  mental 
characteristics  very  rapidly.  Thus,  in  the 
fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries,  immedi- 
ately after  the  long  Dark  Ages,  the 
British  and  several  other  Euroj:)ean  races 
suddenly  became  intellectually  active 
and  socially  progressive.  The  Japanese 
supply  a  more  modern,  the  Greeks  and 
Romans  more  ancient,  instances.  The 
latter  quite  as  suddenly  sank  into  abysmal 
degradation.  Innate  mental  characters, 
such  as  the  instincts,  usually  change  so 
slowly  that  not  merely  historical  but  geo- 
logical time  elapses  before  the  alteration  is 
perceptible.  Again,  the  reader  must  note 
that,  while  the  opinion  that  racial  traits 
are  inborn  is  nearly  universal,  most  men 
act  as  if  they  knew  them  to  be  acquired  ; 
for  nearly  all  men  are  careful  in  training 
their  children,  especially  with  respect  to 
those  traits  that  contribute  to  the  for- 
mation of  character. 

Doubtless,  races  of  men  differ  innately 
in  mind  as  they  do    in    body,  but   these 

114 


differences  can  o  ci  '•  only  within  narrow 

limits.     The  instiiicls  of  all  races  are,   of 

course,  very  similar,  for  all  the  instincts 

are  essential  to  the  preservation  of  hfe. 

But    races    may    differ    in    strength    of 

instinct,  and  more  especially  in  powers  of 

memory.     Thus  it  is  possible,  or  probable, 

that  the  Englisji,  for  example,  are  more 

capable    of    profiting    by    ex- 

'"^*  perience  than  Australian  blacks. 

acts  to       Certainly,     their     brains      are 

™  ™  "^  larger.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
brain  grows  under  the  stimulus  of  use,  and 
therefore  the  larger  size  of  the  English 
brain  may  be  due  to  more  arduous  labour. 

Lastly,  the  reader  must  ask  himself  the 
question  :  What  mental  effects  have 
centuries  of  freedom  or  slavery,  or  of 
civilisation,  or  of  barbarism,  on  races  ? 
Do  they  produce  innate  changes,  or  do 
they  merely  render  certain  acquirements 
so  nearly  universal  that  their  perpetuation 
by  imitation  is  insured  ?  If  he  supposes 
that  the  changes  are  innate,  he  must  ask 
himself  the  additional  question  whether 
they  arose  through  the  transmission  of 
parental  acquirements  to  offspring,  or 
through  the  actua'  and  constant  destruc- 
tion in  certain  environments  of  certain 
definite  types  of  individuals  who  were 
thus  prevented  from  leaving  offspring  and 
so  perpetuating  their  like.  The  former 
hypothesis  is  now  generally  repudiated  by 
science.  The  latter  may  be  true,  but  as 
yet  has  not  been  supported  by  evidence ; 
or  at  any  rate  is  supported  only  by  such 
evidence  as  that  which  Mill  and  Buckle 
denounced.  In  either  case,  though  history 
may  furnish  him  with  intellectual  occupa- 
tion, it  will  supply  few  lessons  of  practical 
value.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  he  has 
perceived  the  greatness  of  the  part  played . 
in  the  human  mind  by  acquirement,  if  he 
has  noted  that  man  is  man,  a  thinking 
and  rational  being,  the  conqueror  of  the 
earth,  only  because  he  is  the  most  im- 
pressionable and  therefore  the  most 
_  adaptable  of  hving  types,  the 

a  ue  o  racial  see-saw  of  the  past  what 
>s  ory  kinds  of  mental  training  have 
conduced  to  success  and  happiness  and 
what  to  ruin,  and  so  perhaps  he  may  find 
himself  in  a  position  to  help  the  fortunes 
of  his  people  and  his  children.  The  real 
value  of  history,  as  in  the  last  analysis 
of  all  experience,  lies  in  its  educational 
applications. 

G.  Archdall  Reid 


PREHISTORIC  MEN  ATTACKING  THE  GREAT   CAVE    BEARS 


M^N 


AND 


ISTORY 


THE    WORLD    BEFORE    HISTORY 

By    Professor   Johannes    Ranke 
THE  WONDERFUL   STORY   OF    DRIFT    AAN 


THE  history  of  the  world  is  the  history 
of  the  human  mind.  The  oldest 
documents  affording  us  knowledge  of  it 
lie  buried  in  those  most  mighty  and 
comprehensive  historical  archives,  the 
geological  strata  of  our  planet.  Natural 
philosophy  has  learned  to  read  these 
stained,  crumpled,  and  much-torn  pages 
,  that  record  the  habitation  of 
a  urc  s  ^^^  earth  by  living  beings  ;  but 
Great  Book        ,  r  .  ■  r  .iT-    u      i 

.  „.  only  a  tew  sections  of  this  book 

""^  of  the  universe  have  yet  been 
perused,  and  these  appear  but  frag- 
mentary in  comparison  with  the  whole 
task.  The  passages  that  relate  to  the 
human  race  are  small  in  number  and  often 
even  ambiguous,  and  it  is  only  the  last 
pages  that  can  give  an  account  of  it. 

The  oldest  undisputed  traces  of  the 
presence  of  man  on  the  earth  that  have 
hitherto  been  discovered  are  met  with  in 
the  strata  of  the  Drift  Epoch,  and  it  is 
only  during  the  last  generation  that  the 
'existence  of  "  Drift  Man "  has  been 
palaeontologically  proved  beyond  dispute. 
The  late  Sir  J.  Prestwick  believed,  how- 
ever— and  his  results  have  been  confirmed 
by  later  discoveries — in  the  existence  of 
evidence  of  the  presence  of  man  in 
Western  Europe  before  the  present 
river  system  of  our  land  was  established, 
long  before  the  age  of  the  "  Drift  "  relics. 
The  evidence  consists  of  rudely  shaped 
pieces  of  flint,  apparently  artificially 
chipped  along  one  or  more  edges.  These 
supposed  implements  are  termed  "  Eoliths." 
They    were      first     discovered     by     Mr. 


Benjamin  Harrison  in  the  high-level 
plateau,  probably  of  the  Upper  Pliocene 
Age,  in  Kent,  and  their  significance  is 
now  widely  accepted. 

Up  to  the  middle  of  last  century  research 
appeared  to  have  established  as  a  positive 
fact  that  man  could  not  be  traced  back  to 
the  older  geological  strata ;  remains  of 
man  were  said  to  be  found  only  in  the 
newest  stratum  of  the  earth's  formation — 
in  the  alluvial,  or  "  recent  "  stratum.  The 
bones  of  man  were  accordingly  claimed  to 
be  sure  guides  to  the  geological  formations 
of  the  present  time,  as  the  bones  of  the 
mammoth  and  cave-bear  were  to  the  strata 
of  the  Drift.  Where  traces  of  man  were 
found  it  was  considered  as  proved  by 
natural  science  that  the  particular  stratum 
in  which  they  occurred  was  to  be  allotted 
to  the  most  recent  system,  which  we  see 
forming  and  being  transformed  under  our 
eyes  at  the  present  day. 

While  it  was  declared  that  man  belonged 

to  the  alluvial  stratum,  it  was  at  the  same 

time  stated,  according  to  the  doctrine  of 

Cuvier,  which  had  the  weight 

of  Naturar  °^  ^  dogma,  that  man  could 
o  *  *"■*  ^qi  have  belonged  to  an  older 
Catastrophes  ,       .      ,  " 

geological     stratum    or    era, 

and  therefore  not  even  to  the  next  older 

one,  the  Drift.    The  beginning  and  the  end 

of  geological  eras  are  marked  by  mighty 

transformations  which  have  caused  a  local 

interruption  in  the  formation  of  the  strata 

of  the  earth's  surface.    In  many  cases  we 

can   point   to   volcanic   eruptions   as   the 

chief   causes,    but   more   especially   to   a 

115 


History  of  the  world 


change  in  the  distribution  of  land  and 
water.  Cuvier  had  conceived  these  changes 
involving  the  transformation  to  have  been 
violent  terrestrial  revolutions,  the  col- 
lapse of  all  existing  things,  in  which  all 
living  beings  belonging  to  the  past  epoch 
must  have  been  annihilated.  It  appeared 
impossible  that  a  living  thing  could  have 
survived  this  hypothetical  battle  of  the 
elements,  and  passed  from  an  older  epoch 
into  the  next  one  ;  and  the  new  epoch  was 
supposed  to  have  received  plants  and 
animals  by  re-creation.  All  this  had  to  be 
applied  to  man  also  ;   he  was  supposed  to 


A  PAGE  FROM  NATURES  HISTORY  BOOK 
It  is  in  the  successive  layers  of  the  earth's  strata  with 
their  human  and  animal  remains  that  we  read  the  story 
of  the  past.  Embedded  in  the  earth  itself  we  have 
the  existence  of  "  Drift  Man "  established.  Our  illus- 
tration is  that  of  a  section  of  the  famous  Kent's  Cavern, 
near    Torquay,    which    is    rich    in    prehistoric    remains. 

have  come  into  existence  only  in  the 
alluvial  period.  Not  without  consideration 
for  the  Mosaic  account  of  the  Creation, 
which,  like  the  creation  legends  of  numer- 
ous peoples  scattered  far  and  wide  over  all 
the  continents  of  the  earth,  tells  of  a  great 
deluge  at  the  beginning  of  the  present 
age,  the  Pleistocene  Epoch  of  the  earth's 
formation  preceding  the  present  period  had 
been  termed  the  Flood  Epoch,  or  Diluvium. 
In  its  stratifications  it  was  thought  that 
the  effects  of  great  deluges  could  largely 
be  recognised  ;  but  the  human  eye  could 
not  have  beheld  these,  for,  according  to 

ii6 


the  catastrophe  theory,  it  appeared  out  of 
the  question  that  man  could  have  been 
"  witness  of  the  Flood." 

Here  modern  research  in  the  primeval 
history  or  palaeontology  of  mankind  begins, 
starting  from  the  complete  transformation 
of  the  doctrine  of  the  geological  epochs 
brought  about  by  Lyell  and  his  school. 

Proofs    of    terrestrial    revolu- 
.     *  tions,  as  local  phenomena  and 

c  ua  y        epoch  marks,  are  doubtless  to 
Happened       i       r  i     •  •  i     j. 

be  found,  imposing  enough  to 

make  the  views  of  the  older  school  appear 
intehigible ;  but,  generally  speaking,  a 
complete  interruption  of  the  existing  con- 
ditions did  not  take  place  between  the 
periods.  Everything  tends  to  prove  that 
even  in  the  earlier  eras  the  transforma- 
tion of  the  earth's  surface  went  on  in  prac- 
tically the  same  way  as  we  see  it  going  on 
before  our  eyes  to-day  in  a  degree  that  is 
slight  only  to  appearance.  The  effects  of 
volcanic  action  ;  the  rising  and  sinking  of 
continents  and  islands,  and  the  alteration 
in  the  distribution  of  sea  and  land  caused 
thereby  ;  the  inroads  of  the  sea  and  its 
work  in  the  destruction  of  coasts  ;  the 
formation  of  deltas  and  the  overflowing  of 
rivers  ;  the  action  of  glaciers  and  torrents 
in  the  mountains,  and  so  forth,  are  con- 
stantly working,  more  or  less,  at  the 
transformation  of  the  earth's  surface. 

As  we  see  these  newest  alluvial  deposits 
being  formed,  so  in  principle  have  the 
strata  of  the  earlier  eras  also  been 
formed,  and  their  miles  of  thickness  prove, 
not  the  violence  of  extreme  and  sudden 
catastrophes,  but  only  the  length  of  time 
that  was  necessary  to  remove  such  mighty 
masses  here  and  pile  them  up  there.  It 
was  not  sudden  general  revolutions  of 
great  violence,  but  the  slowly  working 
forces,  small  only  to  appearance,  well 
known  from  our  present-day  surroundings, 
which  destroy  in  one  place  and  build  up 
again  in  another  with  the  material  ob- 
tained from  the  destruction — it  was  these 
which  were  the  causes  of  the 
gradual  transformation  of  the 
earth  in  all  periods  of  its  his- 
tory comparable  to  the  jiresent. 
According  to  this  new  concej^tion  of 
geological  processes,  a  general  destruction 
of  plants  and  animals  at  the  end  of  eras, 
and  a  new  creation  at  the  beginning 
of  the  following  ones,  was  no  longer  a 
postulate  of  science  as  it  had  been.  The 
living  creatures  of  the  earliest  eras  could 
now   be   claimed    as    ancestors    of    those 


Nature's 

Unbroken 

Chain 


This  indicates  a  vast  stretch  of  the  lost  land  of  England,  looking  towards  the  Scilly  Isles  from  Land's  End.     All 
between  the  broken  lines  was  once  land  as  far  as  Scilly,  thirty  miles  away  and  fifty  miles  thence  to  Lizard  Point. 


/.-Vyr-  g 

-'iiijroi.K         / 

1 

i 

::■    ./ 

' "-■? 

'  .1 

It/i'U^'a'Si 


In  old  maps  Bavent  was  for-  The  coast  of  England  is  being  slowly  worn  away  by  the  sea.  In  many  places 
merly  the  most  easterly  point  of  houses  have  been  swallowed  up.  Here  we  see  the  disintegrating  process  going 
England;  now  that  is  Lowestoft,     on  at  Holderness,  where  the  sea  front  presented  this  appearance  after    a  gale. 


SLOW  INFLUENCES  THAT  DESTROY  IN  ONE  PLACE  AND  BUILD  UP  IN  ANOTJIER 
The  coming  of  the  sea  over  the  land  is  so  slow  as  to  be  almost  imperceptible,  but  these  pictures  illustrate  its  pro- 
gress. The  pictures  in  the  upper  half  of  the  page  show  how  the  sea  is  encroaching  on  the  coast ;  the  opposite  result 
is  shown  in  the  bottom  view  from  Reigate  Hill,  where  we  see  an  ancient  arm  of  the  sea  now  a  rich  and  populous  valley. 

117 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


living  to-day  ;  the  chain 
seems  nowhere  com- 
pletely broken.  The  an- 
cestors of  the  human  race 
were  also  to  be  sought  in 
the  strata  of  the  earher 
geological  periods. 

Among  the  forces 
which  we  find  attended 
by  a  transformation  of 
the  fauna  and  flora  of 
the  earth's  eras,  the  in- 
fluences of  climatic 
changes  in  particular  are 
clearly  and  surely  shown. 
In  that  primeval  period 
in  which  the  coal  group 
was  formed  the  chmate 
in  widely  different  parts 
of  the  earth  was  com- 
paratively equable,  little 
divided  into  zones,  and 
of  a  moist  warmth  ;  this 
is  proved  by  the  really 
gigantic  masses  of  plant 
growth  implied  by  the 
formation  of  many  coal 
strata,  in  which  the 
remains  of  a  luxuriant 
cryptogamic  flora  are 
everywhere  embedded. 
In  Greenland,  in  the 
strata  belonging  to  the 
chalk  period,  and  even 
in  the  deposits  of  the 
Tertiary  Period,  which 
immediately  precedes  the 
Drift  Era,  the  remains 
of  higher  dicotyledonous 
plants  of  tropical  charac- 
ter are  found.  The 
occurrence  of  palaeozoic 
coral  reefs  in  high  lati- 
tudes also  goes  to  prove 
that  the  temperature  of 
the  sea  water  there  was  higher  at  that 
time  :  in  fact,  that  a  tropical  climate 
existed  in  the  farthest  north — an  extreme 
contrast  to  the  present  ice-sheet  on  its 
land  and  the  icebergs  of  its  seas. 

In  Central  Europe  the  climatic  conditions 
can  have  been  only  slightly  different.  During 
the  middle  Tertiary  Period  palms  grew  in 
Switzerland  ;  and  even  at  the  end  of  the 
Tertiary  Period,  as  it  was  slowly  passing 
into  the  Drift  Era,  the  climate  in  Central 
Europe  was  still  warmer  than  now,  being 
much  like  that  of  Northern  Italy,  and  its 
protected  west  coast  the  Riviera.  There 
ii8 


EUROPE    BEFORE    THE    BRITISH     ISLES    WERE    FORMED 
This  map  and  section  illustrate   the  coast  line  of    Prehistoric    Europe   when 
the    British    Isles    were    part    of  the   Continent  and   the  North  Sea  did    not 
exist.     The  black  parts  of  the  section  were  all  above  the  level  of  the  Atlantic. 

was  also  a  rich  flora,  partly  evergreen,  and 
a  fauna  adapted  to  such  mild  surroundings. 
Even  in  the  oldest  (Preglacial)  strata,  and 
again  in  the  middle  (Interglacial)  strata 
of  the  Central  European  drift,  there  was 
still  an  abundant  plant-growth  requiring 
a  temperate  climate,  at  any  rate  not  more 
severe  than  Central  Europe  possesses  at 
the  present  day.  Our  chief  forest  trees 
grew  even  then — the  pine,  fir,  larch,  and 
yew,  and  also  the  oak,  maple,  birch,  hazel, 
etc.  On  the  other  hand.  Northern  and 
Alpine  forms  are  absent  among  the  plants. 
The  same    holds    good    of    the    animal 


THE    WONDERFUL   STORY    OF    DRIFT    MAN 


THE    SUBMERGED    LANDS    OF    EUROPE 
This   map   and   section    show   how  the    Continental    shelf   of   Europe    runs   out 
to  the   Atlantic,   and   how  enormous   is   the   area   now   submerged   in  the    com- 
paratively shallow  water  of  the  North  Sea,  the   Irish  Sea,  and  the  Channel. 

world,  which  was  certainly  much  farther 
removed  than  the  plant  world  from  the 
conditions  prevailing  now.  The  gigantic 
forms — the  elephant,  rhinoceros,  and  hip- 
popotamus— appear  particularly  strange 
to  us,  as  also  the  large  beasts  of  prey — 
the  hyena,  lion,  etc.  But  besides  these,  and 
the  giant  deer  with  its  powerful  antlers,  and 
two  large  bovine  species — the  bison  and 
the  urus — there  were  also  the  majority 
of  the  present  wild  animals  of  Central 
and  Northern  Europe  that  were  originally 
natives — as  the  horse,  stag,  roe,  wild  boar, 
and  beaver,  with  the  smaller  rodents  and 


insectivora,  ai.i  the 
wolf,  fox,  lynx,  and 
bears,  of  which  last 
the  cave-bear  was  fai 
larger  than  the  present 
brown  bear,  and  even 
than  the  Polar  and 
grizzly  bears. 

We  have  sure  proofs 
that  through  a  decrease 
in  the  yearly  temper- 
ature a  glacial  period  set 
in  over  Europe,  North 
Asia,  and  North 
America,  burying  vast 
areas  under  a  sheet  of 
ice,  of  the  effect  and 
extent  of  which  North- 
ern Greenland,  with  its 
ground-relief  veiled  in 
inland  ice,  can  give  us 
an  idea. 

The  immediate  conse- 
quence    of     this     total 
climatic    change  was  an 
essential    change   in  the 
fauna.   Forms  that  were 
not  suited  to  the  dete- 
riorated    climate,    that 
could   neither    stand    it 
nor  adapt  themselves  to 
it,  were  first  compelled 
to  retire,  and  then  were 
exterminated.    This  fate 
befell     the     hippopota- 
muses, and  also  one  of 
the  two  elephant  species, 
Elephas   antiquus,    with 
its  dwarf  breeds  in  Sicily 
and      Malta,     probably 
thus  developed   by  this 
retreat;    then   the 
rhinoceros  -  like      Elas- 
motherium,  a  species   of 
beaver ;      the      Trogon- 
therimn,  and  the  powerful  cat  Machairodtis 
or  Trucifelis,  which  still  lived  in  England, 
France,    and    Liguria    during    the    Drift 
Period.     Other  animals,  like  the  lion  and 
hyena,  withdrew  to  more  southerly  regions, 
not    affected   by  the  increasing  cold   and 
more  remote  from  its  effects. 

On  the  other  hand,  according  to  Von 
Zittel's  description,  an  immigration  of 
cold-loving  land  animals  took  place,  which 
at  the  present  day  live  either  in  the  Far 
North  or  on  the  wild  Asiatic  steppes,  or  in 
the  high  mountam  ranges.  These  new 
immigrants  mixed  with  the  surviving  forms 

119 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


of  the  older  drift  fauna.  The  latter  lived, 
as  we  have  seen,  by  no  means  in  a  warm 
cHmate,  but  only  in  a  temperate  "  nor- 
therly "  one,  even  in  the  warmer  periods 
of  the  epoch.  So  we  can  understand  that 
many  of  this  older  animal  community  were 
well  able  to  adapt  themselves  to  colder 
climatic  conditions,  and  among  them  two 
of  the  large  Drift  pachydermata, 


_  f.       ^^    the    elephant    and    rhinoceros, 
Anim&Is 


whose  kin  we  now  find  only 
in  the  warmest  climes.  But  a 
thick  woolly  coat  made  these  two  Drift 
animals  well  fitted  to  defy  a  raw  climate — 
namely,  the  woolly-haired  mammoth,  Ele- 
phas  primigenius,  one  of  the  two  Drift 
species  of  elephants  of  Europe,  and  the 
woolly-haired  rhinoceros.  Rhinoceros  anti- 
qnitatis.  A  second  species  of  rhinoceros, 
Rhifioceros  merckii,  was  also  preserved, 
and  maintained  its  region  of  distribution. 
The  horse  was  now  more  largely  distri- 
buted, and  inhabited  the  plains  in  herds  ; 
but,  above  all,  the  reindeer  immigrated 
along  with  other  animals  that  now  belong 
only  to  Far  Northern  and  Arctic  regions, 
and  pastured  in  large  herds  at  the  edges  of 
the  glaciers.  With  the  reindeer,  although 
less  frequent,  was  the  musk-ox  of  the  Far 
North,  besides  many  other  cold-loving 
species,  such  as  the  lemming,  snow-mouse, 
glutton,  ermine,  and  Arctic  fox.  Many  of 
the  animal  forms  that  were  very  frequent 
then,  in  the  Drift  Period,  appear  now  in 
Central  Europe  only  as  Alpine  dwellers, 
living  on  the  borders  of  eternal  snow,  such 
as  the  ibex,  chamois,  marmot,  and  Alpine 
hare. 

Of  special  importance  for  our  main 
question  is  the  great  invasion  of  Europe 
by  Central  Asiatic  animals  ;  immigrants 
direct  from  the  Asiatic  steppes  pushed 
westward  "  as  in  a  migration  of  nations," 
among  them  the  wild  ass,  saiga  antelope, 
bobac,  Asiatic  porcupine,  zizel,  jumping 
mouse,  whistling  hare,  and  musk  shrew- 

^.     .   .     ,  mouse.     According  as  the  gla- 
Thc  Animal  a    ■    ^       a    ■ 

ciers    and  mland  ice  grew  or 

,r  shrank,    the    animals    of    the 

of  Europe  i       ■    i  •     j         ^  ^ 

glacial  period  advanced  more 
or  less  far  to  the  North  or  retired  more 
to  the  South,  extending  or  reducing 
their  range  of  distribution.  The  Gla- 
cial Period  was  no  invariable  climatic 
phenomenon.  It  is  perfectly  certain  that 
a  first  Glacial  Period  with  a  low  yearly 
temperature,  under  the  influence  of  which 
the  ice-masses,  with  their  moraines,  ad- 
vanced a  long  way  from  the  North  and 

120 


from  the  high  mountains,  so  that  in 
Germany,  for  instance,  only  a  compara- 
tively narrow  strip  remained  free  and 
habitable  for  higher  forms  of  life  between 
the  two  opposing  rivers  of  ice — was  suc- 
ceeded by  at  least  one  period  of  warmer 
climate,  and  that  certainly  not  a  short 
one.  The  mean  yearly  temperature  had 
increased  so  much  that  the  ice-masses 
melted  to  a  considerable  extent,  and  had 
to  retire  far  to  the  North  and  into  the  high 
valleys  of  the  Alps.  In  this  warmer  inter- 
glacial  Period,  as  it  is  called,  the  Drift 
animals  advanced  far  to  the  North,  es- 
pecially the  mammoth,  which,  with  the 
exception  of  the  greater  part  of  Scan- 
dinavia and  Finland  (districts  which 
remained  covered  with  ice  during  the  Inter- 
glacial  Period),  is  distributed  throughout 
the  drift  strata  of  the  whole  of  Europe 
and  North  Africa,  and  as  far  as  Lake 
Baikal  and  the  Caspian  Sea  in  Northern 
Asia.  Even  the  older  Drift  fauna,  so  far 
as  it  had  not  yet  died  out  or  retired, 
returned  to  its  old  habitats,  so  that  Ihe 
Interglacial  fauna  of  Central  Europe  ap- 
pear very  similar  to  the  Preglacial  fauna. 
A  long-sustained  decrease  of 
f  fK  I  ^^^^  temperature  led  once  more  to 
A  ^cv^  ^^^  growth  of  the  ice,  which  in 
gc  ima  e  ^^.^  second  Glacial  Period 
almost  reconquered  the  territory  it  had 
won  at  first. 

In  consequence  of  these  oscillations  in 
the  chmatic  conditions  of  the  Drift  Era 
as  a  whole,  we  have  to  distinguish  the 
Preglacial  Era  and  the  Interglacial  Era, 
as  warmer  sub-periods  of  the  Drift, 
from  the  real  Glacial  Periods.  The  latter 
appear  as  a  first,  or  earlier,  and  a  second, 
or  later  Glacial  Period,  as  remains  of 
which  the  zone  of  the  older  moraines  and 
the  zone  of  the  later  ones  clearly  mark 
the  limits  of  the  former  glaciation. 

It  was  this  second  deterioration  of  the 
climate,  with  the  fresh  advances  made 
by  the  glaciers  and  masses  of  inland  ice, 
which  definitely  did  away  with  the  older 
Drift  fauna  that  was  not  equal  to  the 
sudden  climatic  change.  Nor  did  the 
woolly-haired  rhinoceros,  the  Rhinoceros 
merckii,  and  the  cave-bear  survive  the 
climax  of  the  new  Glacial  Period.  Even  the 
woolly-haired  mammoth  succumbed.  It 
and  the  woolly-haired  rhinoceros,  accom- 
panied by  the  musk-ox  and  bison,  had 
made  their  way  into  the  Far  North  of  Asia. 
But  while  the  two  last  species  bore  the 
inclemencies    of    the   climate,  the    rhino- 


The    Ibex  The  Man  ot 

TYPES    OF    ANIMALS    SURVIVING    IN    CENTRAL    EUROPE    FROM    THE    DRIFT    PERIOD 

Manv   of  the  animal  forms  that  were  very  frequent   in  the  Drift  Period  appear  now  in  Central  Europe   only  as 

Alpme  dwellers    iTvUg  on  the  borders    of   eternal  snow.     Such  ai  2  the  ibex,  chamois,  marmot,  and  Alpme  hare. 


ceroses  and  elephants  met  their  end  here. 
And  yet  they  had  long  preserved  their 
hves  on  the  borders  of  eternal  ice.  Whole 
carcases,  both  of  the  woolly-haired  and 
Merckian  rhinoceroses,  and  also  of  the 
woolly-haired  mammoth,  the  bison,  and 
the  musk-ox,  with  skin  and  hair  and  well- 
preserved  soft  parts,  have  been  discovered 
in  the  ice  and  frozen  ground  between  the 
Yenisei  and  Lena,  and  on  the  New 
Siberian  Islands  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Lena.     The    carcases    of    the    mammoth 


and  rhinoceros  found  imbedded  in  the  ice 
were  covered  with  a  coat  of  thick  woolly 
hair  and  reddish-brown  bristles  ten  inches 
long  ;  about  thirty  pounds  of  hair  from 
such  a  mammoth  were  placed  in  the  St. 
Petersburg  Natural  History  Museum.  A 
mane  hung  from  the  animal's  neck  almost 
to  its  knees,  and  on  its  head  was  soft  hair 
a  yard  long.  The  animals  were  therefore 
in  this  respect  well  equipped  for  enduring 
a  cold  climate.  As  regards  their  food  they 
were  also  adapted  to  a  cold  climate,  traces 

121 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


Breaking 
up  of 
the  Earth 


of  coniferae  and  willows-^  that  is,  "  Northern 
plants  " — having  been  found  in  the  hollows 
of  the  molar  teeth  of  mammoths  and 
rhinoceroses.  The  mammoth  proves  to 
have  had  greater  resisting  power,  and  to 
have  been  more  fit  for  further  migrations, 
than  the  rhinoceros.  The  latter's  range 
of  distribution  extended  over  the  whole 
of  Northern  and  Temperate 
Europe,  China  and  Central  Asia, 
and  Northern  Asia  and  Siberia. 
But,  as  we  have  seen,  the  mam- 
moth penetrated  not  only  into  North  Africa, 
but,  what  is  of  the  highest  importance  for 
the  proper  understanding  of  the  settling  of 
the  New  World,  even  into  North  America. 
The  connection  which  in  earlier  geo- 
logical periods  had  united  Europe,  Asia, 
Africa,  and  North  America  in  the  greatest 
homogeneous  zoogeographical  kingdom, 
the  Arctogaea,  was  broken  during  the 
Tertiary  and  Drift  Periods,  so  that  several 
zoogeographical  provinces  were  formed. 
The  connection  with  North  America  was 
the  first  to  be  broken,  so  that  even  in  the 
last  two  divisions  of  the  Tertiary  Period, 
the  Miocene  and  Pliocene  Epochs,  the  Old 
and  the  New  Worlds  stood  in  the  relation 
of  independent  zoogeographical  provinces 
to  one  another.  Now,  it  is  of  the  greatest 
importance  to  note  that  during  the  Drift 
Period  North  America  again  received  some 
Northern  immigrants  from  the  Old  World, 
according  to  Von  Zittel  "  probably  via 
Eastern  Asia."  Consequently,  during  the 
Drift  Period  communication  existed,  at 
least  temporarily,  between  Asia  and  North 
America  in  the  region  of  Bering  Strait, 
sufficient  to  allow  the  mammoth  and 
some  companions  to  migrate  from  the  one 
continent  to  the  other.  In  Kotzebue 
Sound  mammoth  remains  are  found  in  the 
"  ground-ice  formation,"  together  with 
those  of  the  horse,  elk,  reindeer,  musk-ox 
and  bison.  Mammoth  remains  are  also 
known  to  have  been  found  in  the  Bering 
Islands,  St.  George  in  the  Pribylov  group, 
_  .       and     Unalaska,     one    of      the 

^°j7/"'°'*"  Aleutian      Islands.      In     that 
^  .       period  the  mammoth  arrived  in 

the  New  World  as  a  colonist 
driven  from  the  Old.  It  spread  widely  over 
British  North  America,  Alaska,  and 
Canada  ;  it  has  also  been  found  in  Ken- 
tucky. A  relatively  recent  union  of  the 
circumpolar  regions  of  the  Northern  Hemi- 
sphere— of  Europe,  Asia,  and  North 
America — is  also  proved  by  the  occurrence 
of  animals  that  we  recognise  as  companions 

122 


of  the  mammoth,  but  which,  surviving  the 
Glacial  Period,  are  still  distributed  over  the 
whole  region,  such  as  the  reindeer,  elk,  and 
bison.  The  absence  in  Asia  of  several 
animals  specially  characteristic  of  the 
European  Drift  (the  hippopotamus,  ibex, 
chamois,  fallow-dear,  wildcat,  and  cave- 
bear)  explains  also  their  absence  in  the 
North  American  Drift  fauna.  It  is  par- 
ticularly strange  that  the  cave-bear  did  not 
reach  Northern  Asia.  It  is  otherwise  the 
most  frequent  beast  of  prey  of  the  Drift 
Period,  and  hundreds  of  its  carcases  often 
lie  buried  in  the  caves  and  clefts  it  once 
inhabited.  In  Southern  Russia  numerous 
remains  of  it  are  found,  whereas  in  the 
English  caves  it  is  rarer,  the  cave-hyena 
predominating  here.  Apart  from  the 
exceptions  just  mentioned,  J.  F.  Brandt 
considers  North  Asia  and  the  high  Northern 
latitudes  to  be  the  region  in  which  the 
European,  North  Asiatic,  and  North 
American  land  fauna  had  concentrated 
during  the  Tertiary  and  Drift  Periods,  and 
whence  their  migrations  and  advances 
took  place  according  as  it  grew  older.  As 
the  northern  fauna  spread  over  more 
southern       latitudes       during 

ArrTv"I°         ^^®    ^'"'^^    Period,    they    took 
•  ""p^*  possession     of     the     habitats 

urope  ^^  ^-^^  species  there  belong- 
ing to  the  Tertiary  Period,  drove  them 
back  into  tropical  and  subtropical  regions, 
and  formed  the  real  stock  of  the  Drift 
fauna,  as  described  by  Von  Zittel  in  his 
"  Palasozoology." 

One  thing  is  certain — namely,  that  the 
northern  borders  of  Siberia  were  not  the 
real  home  of  the  mammoth  and  its  com- 
panions ;  the  original  habitat  of  these 
animals  points  to  the  far  interior  of  Asia, 
particularly  to  the  wild  table-lands,  where 
they  so  far  steeled  themselves  in  enduring 
the  climate  that  in  the  course  of  the  Glacial 
Period  half  the  world  became  accessible 
to  them.  As  far  as  is  known  to-day,  the 
mammoth  arrived  in  Europe  earlier  than 
on  the  northern  borders  of  Asia,  where, 
protected  by  climatic  conditions,  its 
remains  are  most  numerous  and  best 
preserved.  The  number  of  these  gigantic 
animals  must  have  been  very  considerable 
in  this  Far  Northern  region  for  a  time, 
judging  from  the  abundance  of  bones 
found  there.  In  Central  Europe  only  a  few 
places  are  known — such  as  Kannstatt 
Predmost  in  Moravia,  etc. — where  the 
mammoth  is  found  with  similar  frequency. 
The  mammoth    attained    its    widest  dis- 


AN    ACTUAL     PHOTOGRAPH    OF    THE    PREHISTORIC    MAMMOTH 
This  stuffed   carcase  of  a    mammoth    is    the   rarest    treasure  of    St.    Petersburg    Academy.      Skeletons   of  these 
creatures  exist  in  plenty,  but  actual  carcases  are  very  rare.     This  was  found  embedded  in  the  ice  on  the  New 
Siberian  Islands.      One  carcase  so  embedded  was  discovered   five  years  before  it  could  be  freed  from  the  ice. 


tribution  in  the  Interglacial  Period.  In 
that  period  it  crossed  the  Alps,  and  arrived 
on  the  other  side,  in  North  Asia,  at  the 
border  of  the  "  stone-ice  "  masses  of  inland 
ice  that  were  still 
preserved  from  the 
first  Glacial  Period. 
The  vegetation  there 
was  richer  then  than 
it  is  to-day  ;  now 
only  the  vegetation 
of  the  tundra  can 
exist.  Animals  found 
coniferae,  willows, 
and  alders  in  suffi- 
cient quantity  to 
enable  them  to  keep 
in  herds.  All  the 
same,  we  have  not 
to  imagine  the  cli- 
mate on  the  borders 
of    the   ice  to   have  skeleton   of 


been  "  genial,"  for 
from  that  period  originate  the  mammoth 
carcases  that  are  found  frozen  entire  in 
crevasses  of  the  ice-fields.  When  the  new 
period  of  cold — the  second  Glacial  Period — 
joegan.  these  Far  Northern  regions  must 


in  the  Natural  History  Museum,  South   Kensing^ton. 


have  become  unsuitable  for  the  mammoth 
owing  to  the  want  of  food.  Von  Toll,  who 
has  examined  the  fossil  ice-beds  and, 
their  relation  to  the  mammoth  carcases 
particularly  on  New 
Siberian  Islands,  says: 

The  mammoths  and 
their  contemporaries 
Uved  where  tfieir  re- 
mains are  found  ;  they 
died  out  gradually 
in  consequence  of 
physical  geographical 
changes  in  tlie  region 
they  inhabited,  and 
through  no  catas- 
trophe ;  their  carcases 
were  deposited  dur- 
ing low  temperatures, 
partly  on  the  river- 
terraces,  and  partly  on 
the  banks  of  lakes  or 
on  glaciers  (inland  ice), 
and  covered  with  mud ; 
like  the  ice-masses  that 
formed  the  foundation  of  their  graves,  their 
mummies  were  preserved  to  the  present  day, 
thanks  to  the  persistent  or  increasing  cold. 

The   woolly-haired  mammoth    did    not 
survive      the      second      Glacial      Period 

-123 


A     MAMMOTH 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


anjAvhere ;  in  the  post-Glacial  Period  its 
traces  have  disappeared. 

The  Drift  series  of  strata  are  nowhere  so 
clearly  exemplified  as  in  the  New  Siberian 
Islands,  where  the  Drift  stone-ice  still 
forms  very  extensive  high  "  ice-cliffs," 
always  covered  with  a  layer  of  loam,  sand, 
and  peat,  and  having  precipices  often 
of  great  height — in  one  place  seventy- 
two  feet. 

Embedded  in  these  cliffs  of  stone- 
ice  have  been  found  the  mammoth  car- 
cases, which  formerly  sank  into  crevices 
in  the  ice.  These  crevices  are  partly 
filled  up  with  snow, 
which  has  turned  into 
"  firn "  and  finally 
into  ice,  but  partly 
also  with  loam  or 
sand,  which  are 
merged  above  imme- 
diately into  the  strata 
overlying  the  stone- 
ire.  In  the  year 
i860  Bojavski,  the 
mammoth-  hunter, 
found  a  mammoth, 
with  all  its  soft  parts 
preserved,  sticking 
upright  in  a  crevice 
in  the  ice  filled  with 
loam  ;  in  1863  it  was 
thrown  down,  to- 
gether with  the  coast- 
wall  that  sheltered  it, 
and  washed  away  by 
the  sea. 

The  Tunguse  Schu- 
machow     had     been 
fortunate 


more 


as 


SURVIVOR    OF    THE     DRIFT    PERIOD 
<^irlTr  etc  T'rrvn     T^nririrr    Only  one   representative  of   the  great   Drift  fauna,   the 
t-clliy  db  1799.    i^UIlIlg    n,„sk-ox,    has    been    able    to    preserve    its    life   to   the 

his    boating    expedi 


on  to  the  sand  of  the  coast.  Here  Adams 
found  the  carcase  in  1806,  or  as  much  as  the 
dogs  and  wild  animals  had  left  of  it.  The 
whole  skeleton,  with  a  portion  of  the  flesh, 
skin,  and  hair,  has  since  formed  one  of 
the  chief  ornaments  of  the  collection  in  the 
Academy  at  St.  Petersburg.  According 
to  Von  Toll,  who  personally  visited  the 
site  of  Bojavski's  discovery,  the  following 
profile  presented  itself  there  :  first  the 
tundra  stratum  ;  then  an  alternation  of 
thin  strata  of  loam  and  ice  ;  under  these 
a  peat-like  layer  of  grass,  leaves,  and 
other  vegetation,  that  had  been  washed 
together  ;  then  a  fine 
layer  of  sand,  with 
remains  of  Salix,  etc., 
and  finally  stone-ice. 
At  another  place,  in 
Gulf  Anabar,  in  73° 
north  latitude,  Von 
ToH  also  found  the 
ground-moraine  un- 
der a  fossil  ice-bed, 
which  appears  to 
jirove  his  theory  of  a 
Drift  region  of  inland 
ice,  of  which  the 
stone-ice  beds  of  New 
Siberia  and  Esch- 
scholtz  Bay  are  re- 
mains. 

Of  these  strata  the 
frozen  loam  deposits 
over  the  stone-ice, 
containing  the  wil- 
low and  the  alder, 
are  doubtless  Inter- 
glacial.  Some  of  the 
remains  of  the  alder 
are  in  such  wonder- 


tions  along  the  coast, 
on  the  look-out  for  mammoth-tusks,  he 
observed  one  day,  between  blocks  of  ice, 
a  shapeless  block  which  was  not  at  all 
like  the  masses  of  driftwood  that  are 
generally  found  there.  In  the  following 
year  the  block  had  melted  a  little,  but  it 
was  only  at  the  end  of  the  third  summer 
that  the  whole  side  and  one  of  the  tusks 
of  a  mammoth  appeared  plainly  out  of  the 
ice  ;  the  animal,  however,  still  remained 
sunk  in  the  ice-masses.  At  last,  towards 
the  end  of  the  fifth  year,  the  ice  between 
the  ground  and  the  mammoth  melted 
more  quickly  than  the  rest,  the  base 
began  to  slope,  and  the  enormous  mass, 
impelled  by  its  own  weight,  glided  down 

124 


present    day    on   the    larger    remnants     of    its     former     ful    preservation   that 
vast    home,    such    as    Greenland    and    Grinnell    Land.     ,i  i-n     i 

there  are  still  leaves 


and    whole    clusters   of    catkins    on    the 
branches. 

The  land-mass  to  which  the  present 
New  Siberian  Islands  belong  was  only 
dismembered  at  the  end  of  the  Inter- 
glacial  Period,  when  colder  sea-currents 
procured  an  entrance,  and  the  accumula- 
tion of  snow-masses  diminished  simul- 
taneously with  the  sinking  of  the  land, 
whereas  the  cold  increased.  The  flora 
died  off,  says  Von  Toll,  and  the  animal 
world  was  deprived  of  the  possibility  of 
roaming  freely  over  vast  areas.  Only 
one  representative  of  the  great  Drift  fauna, 
the  musk-ox,  has  been  able  to  preserve  its 
life  to    the   present    day   on    the    larger 


TH£    WONDERFUL    STORY    OF    DRIFT    MAN 


Remains 
of  the 
Ice  Age 


remnants  of  its  former  vast  home,  such  as 
Greenland  and  Grinnell  Land. 

As  we  have  said,  the  geological  and 
climatic  conditions  in  all  regions  of  the 
earth  affected  by  the  Glacial  Period  were 
closely  similar  to  those  just  described. 
In  other  places  the  Drift  stone-ice  has  long 
disappeared,  but  the  ground-moraines  of 
the  former  inland  ice-masses, 
and  the  surface-moraines  (ter- 
minal and  lateral)  of  the  former 
gigantic  glaciers,  constitute  its 
unobliterated  traces.  On  the  moraines 
of  the  earlier  Glacial  Period  we  find  the 
strata  of  the  Interglacial  Period  deposited, 
and  on  the  later  moraines  of  the  second 
(last)  Glacial  Period  lie  the  remains  of  the 
post-Glacial  Period,  in  the  course  of  which 
a  continual  increase  in  the  yearly  tempera- 
ture— probably  only  a  few  degrees  of  the 
thermometer — caused  the  glaciers  to  melt 
and  retreat,  and  opened  the  way  for  the 
return  of  plants  and  animals  to  what  had 
been  deserts  of  snow  and  ice.  The  place 
formerly  occupied  by  the  Interglacial 
and  Glacial  fauna  is  then  taken  by  the 
post-Glacial  fauna,  which  proves  consider- 
ably different. 

A  number  of  the  most  characteristic 
species  of  the  former  sections  of  the  Drift 
Period  are  already  absent  in  the  earliest 
post-Glacial  deposits ;  the  fauna  approaches 
nearer  and  nearer  in  its  composition  to 
that  of  the  present  day.  The  inland  ice- 
masses  and  gigantic  glaciers  began  to  melt 
away,  and  gradually  retired  to  the  present 
limits  of  the  glaciation  that  forms  the 
remains  of  the  Glacial  Period  of  the  Drift. 
The  animal  forms  of  the  beginning  of  the 
post-Glacial  Period  are  still  living,  and  the 
plants  characterising  this  final  stage  of 
the  Drift  Period  are  still  growing  on  the 


borders  of  the  ice  at  the  present  day.  In  the 
post-Glacial  Period  a  few  Northern  forms — 
such  as  the  reindeer,  lemming,  ringed  lem- 
ming, glutton,  zizel,  whistling  hare,  and 
jumping  mouse — still  retained  for  a  time 
their  habitats  in  Central  Europe.  Part 
of  the  Drift  fauna — as  the  horse,  wild  ass, 
saiga  antelope,  and  Asiatic  porcupine 
— concentrated  again  in  the  Asiatic 
steppes,  from  which  they  had  formerly 
won  their  territory  of  the  Drift  Period; 
the  specific  Glacial  forms — the  reindeer 
and  his  above-mentioned  companions — 
followed  the  retreating  ice-masses  into 
the  Far  North,  and  even  into  Polar  regions. 
Another  part — the  specially  Alpine  forms, 
such  as  the  ibex,  chamois,  marmot,  and 
Alpine  hare — migrated  with  the  Alpine 
glaciers  into  the  high  valleys  of  ihe  Alps, 
where  they  could  continue  the  life  they  had 
led  in  the  lowlands  during  the  (jlacial 
Period.  The  mammoth,  woolly-haired 
rhinoceros,  and  cave-bear  are  extinct. 

The  present-day  mammalian  fauna  of 
Europe  and  North  Asia  accordingly  bears 
a  comparatively  young  character ;  during 
the  Drift,  and  especially  in  consequence  of 
the  Glacial  Period,  it  underwent  the  most 
considerable  transformations. 

It  is  in  the  middle  of  this  great  drama 

_      .  of    a    gigantic    animal    world 

ommg  o      struggling  and  fighting  for  its 

Man  upon  oo       o        ..,       °,         ° 

,.     c  existence     with    the    superior 

powers  of  Nature,  during  the 
Interglacial  period  of  the  Drift,  that  man 
suddenly  appears  upon  the  scene  in  Europe 
like  a  dens  ex  machina. 

Whence  he  came  we  do  not  know. 

Did  he  make  his  entrance  into  Europe 
in  company  with  the  Drift  fauna  that  im- 
migrated from  Central  Asia,  or  have  we  to 
seek  his  original  home  in  the  New  World  ? 


125 


B/io/vrosAunvs 


MAMMOTH 


,^     ^S^. 


ir-      ..     ICHTHYOSAURUS 


PLSsiosAunus 


C2f2BC223ff* 


THE  FIRST  TENANTS  OF  THE  WORLD:  CREATURES  THAT  LIVED  BEFORE  MAN 

This  page  represents  the  most  typical  of  the  giant  creatures  that  inhabited  the  world  before  man.     With  possibly  one 
exception,  they  had  disappeared  before  man  came  and,  through  long  centuries,  slowly  won  dominion  over  the  earth. 


126 


THE  WORLD 

BEFORE 
HISTORY— II 


Professor 

JOHANNES 

RANKE 


THE  APPEARANCE  OF  MAN  ON  THE  EARTH 


T 


HE    remains    of    the  Drift    fauna    are 
usually  found  mixed  up  and  washed 
together  in  caves  and  rock-crevices.    From 
the  investigation  of  the  caves  inThuringia, 
Franconia,  and  elsewhere  practically  pro- 
ceeded the   first  knowledge   of   the  Drift 
fauna    of  Central   Europe.      Here,    right 
among   the    bones   of    primeval   animals, 
were  also  found  bones  and  skulls  of  man. 
The  strata  in  which  they  were  discovered 
appeared    undisturbed  ;   that    they   came 
into    the    old  burial-places   of    the   Drift 
fauna  subsequently— perhaps  by  an  inten- 
tional burial  of  relatively  recent  times- 
was   thought   to  be  out   of   the  question. 
The  discovery  that  became  most  famous 
was  Esper's,  in  one  of  the  richest  caves 
of  "  Franconian  Switzerland,"    the   Gail- 
lenreuth  cave.  There,  in  1774,  Esper  found 
a   man's    lower    jaw    and    shoulder-blade 
at  a  perfectly  untouched   spot    protected 
by  a  stone  projection   in   the  cave  wall, 
in    the   same   loam   as  bones 
The  Mystery   ^^    ^-^e   cave-bear   and   other 
°^  *      _     „    Drift  animals.  Later,  a  human 
Human  Skull    ^^^^^  ^- ^^  ^^^^  ^^^g  potsherds 

of   clay  came  to  light  in   another   place. 
Esper  argued  thus  : 

As  the  human  bones  (lower  jaw  and 
shoulder-blade)  lav  among  the  skeletons  of 
animals,  of  which  the  Gaillenreuth  caves  are 
full  and  as  they  were  found  in  what  is  in  all 
probability  the  original  stratum,  I  presume, 
and  I  think  not  without  sufficient  reason, 
that  these  human  limbs  are  of  equal  age 
with  the  other  animal  fossils. 

The  Cuvier  catastrophe  theory  could  not 
allow  this  inference  ;  according  to  that 
theory  it  was  a  "  scientific  postulate " 
that  man  could  not  have  appeared  on  the 
earth  until  the  alluvial  period,  and  there- 
fore after  the  Drift  fauna  had  become 
extinct.  Therefore,  in  spite  of  appearances, 
the  human  bones  must  have  been  more 
recent ;  and  it  was  indeed  absolutely 
proved  that  the  skull  that  Esper  had 
found  in  the  cave  with  the  rude  clay  pot- 
sherds originated  from  a  burial  in  the 
floor  of  the  cave.  As  this  was  full  of 
remains  of  Drift  animals,  the  corpse,  which 
had  been  covered  with  the  earth  that  had 


been  thrown  up  in  digging  the  grave,  was 
necessarily  surrounded  by  these  remains, 
and  even  appeared  embedded  in  them. 

It  was  ascertained  that  in  very  early 
times,  but  yet  long  after  the  Drift  Period, 
the  dwellers  near  by  had  had  a  predi- 
lection for  using  the  caves  as  burial- 
places,  so  that  the  fact  of  human  bones 
coming  together  with  bones 
The  Story  ^^  j)j.-f^  animals  in  the  floor 
°'  of  the  same  cave  is  easily  ex- 

the  Caves     p^^^j^g^j   Moreover,  it  was  found 

that  from  the  earliest  times  down  to  the 
present  day  the  caves  had  been  used  by 
hunters,  herdsmen,  and  others  as  places 
of  shelter  in  bad  weather,  as  cooking- 
places,  and  sometimes  even — especially 
in  very  early  times— as  regular  dwelling- 
places  for  longer  periods,  so  that  refuse  of 
all  kinds,  and  often  of  all  ages  and  forms 
of  civilisation  that  the  land  has  seen  from 
the  Drift  Period  down  to  modern  times, 
must  have  got  into  the  floors  of  the  caves. 
If  these  were  damp  and  soft,  the  remains 
of  every  century  were  trodden  in  and  got 
to  lie  deeper  and  deeper,  so  that,  for 
instance,  the  fragments  of  a  cast-iron 
saucepan  were  actually  found  right  among 
the  bones  of  regular  Drift  animals  in  a 
cave  in  Upper  Franconia. 

The  discoveries   of  human  remains  in 
caves  appeared  discredited  by  this,  and  to 
be  of  no  value  as  proofs  of  the  co-existence 
of  man  with  the  Drift  fauna.    And  indeed 
this    position   must    practically    be    still 
taken  at  the  present  day  :    all  cave -finds 
are  to  be  judged  with  the  greatest  cau- 
tion. They  in  themselves  would  never  have 
"  been     sufficient     to    estabUsh 
The  Caves    ^^^    existence   of    Drift    Man, 
do  not  Prove  ^j^j^Q^g^^     according     to     the 
Drift  Man     ^^^^^^^     change    in    scientific 
thought   that    led    to    the   overthrow    of 
Cuvier's  theory.  Drift  Man  is  now  just  as 
much  a  postulate  of  science  as  was  for- 
merly the  case  for  the  opposite  assumption. 
The  first  sure  proofs  were  adduced  in 
France   by   Boucher   de   Perthes,    in   the 
Drift    beds    of    the  Somme    valley,    near 
Abbeville,  at  the  end  of  the  third  decade 

127 


HISTORY    OF    THE     WORLD 


of  the  nineteenth  century.  Fully  recog- 
nising the  inadequacy  of  proof  given  by 
cave-finds,  he  had  sought  for  the  relics 
of  man  in  the  undisturbed  Drift  beds  of 
gravel  and  coarse  sand  that  contains  the 
bones  of  Drift  animals,  which  by  their 
covering  and  depth  precluded  all  suspicion 
of   having   been   subsequently   dug   over. 

_.  ,.  ,.  And  he  was  successful.  He  had 
Finding  the  ,  •  ^i     ^u 

*         argued  m  exactly  the  same  man- 

d'  'ft  M  "^^  '^^  Esper  had  formerly  done, 
but  with  better  right.  In  the 
stratified  Drift  formations  every  period  is 
sharply  defined  by  the  layers  of  differently 
coloured  and  differently  composed  strata 
horizontally  overlying  one  another.  Here 
the  proofs  begin.  They  are  irrefutable  if 
it  is  shown  that  the  relics  of  man  have  been 
there  since  the  deposit.  Being  no  less  immo- 
vable than  this  stratum  in  which  they  lie,  as 
they  came  with  it,  they  were  likewise  pre- 
served with  it ;  and  as  they  have  contribu- 
ted to  its  formation,  they  existed  before  it. 
That  is  the  line  of  thought  according 
to  which  Boucher  de  Perthes  was  able, 
in  1839,  to  lay  before  the  leading  experts 
in  Paris — at  their  head  Cuvier  himself — 
his  discoveries  proving  the  former  exist- 
ence of  Drift  man.  But  his  demonstra- 
tions were  not  then  sufficient  to  break  the 
old  ban  of  prejudices  that  were  apparently 
founded  on  such  good  scientific  bases ; 
his  proofs  of  the  presence  of  man  in  the 
Somme  valley  at  the  time  of  the  Drift, 
contemporaneously  with  the  extinct  Drift 
animals,  were  ridiculed.  It  was  twenty 
years  before  these  long-neglected  dis- 
coveries in  the  Somme  valley  concerning  the 
early  history  of  man  were  recognised  by 
the  scientific  world.  This  was  only  made 
possible  by  Lyell,  whose  authority  as  a 
geologist  had  risen  above  Cuvier's,  placing 
the  whole  weight  of  it  on  Boucher's 
side,  after  having  personally  travelled 
over  the  Somme  valley  three  times  in  the 
year  1859,  ^^'^  having  himself  examined 
all  the  chief  places  where  relics   of  Drift 

_.  _,  ,.  Man  had  been  discovered. 
The  Overthrow     .  ,•  .        r       ii>        i 

-  ^     .    ,  Accordmg    to    Lyell  s    de- 

of  Cuvier  s  •    i-        ^i      r-  ,i 

Famous  Theory  fcript'on,  the  Somme  valley 
lies  m  a  district  of  white 
chalk,  which  forms  elevations  of  several 
hundred  feet  in  height.  If  we  ascend  to 
this  height  we  find  ourselves  on  an  exten- 
sive tableland,  showing  only  moderate 
elevations  and  depressions,  and  covered 
uninterruptedly  for  miles  with  loam  and 
brick  earth  about  five  feet  thick  and  quite 
devoid  of  fossils.  Here  and  there  on  the 
128 


chalk  may  be  noticed  outlying  patches  of 
Tertiary  sand  and  clay,  the  remains  of  a 
once  extensive  formation,  the  denudation 
of  which  has  chiefly  furnished  the  Drift 
gravel  material  in  which  the  relics  of  man 
and  the  bones  of  extinct  animals  lie  buried. 
The  Drift  alluvial  deposit  of  the  Scmme 
valley  exhibits  nothing  extraordinary  in 
its  stratification  or  outward  appearance, 
nor  in  its  composition  or  organic  contents. 
The  stratum  in  which  the  bones  of  the 
Drift  fauna  are  found  intermingled  with 
the  relics  of  man  is  partly  a  marine  and 
partly  a  fluviatile  deposit.  The  human 
relics  in  particular  are  mostly  buried  deep 
in  the  gravel ;  almost  everjrvvhere  one  has 
to  pass  down  through  a  mass  of  overlying 
loam  with  land  shells,  or  a  fine  sand  with 
fresh-water  molluscs,  before  coming  to 
beds  of  gravel,  in  which  the  rehcs  of 
Drift  Man  are  found. 

Everything  shows  that  the  relics  of  man 
are  here  in  a  secondary  situs,  deposited 
in  the  same  way  as  the  bones  of  extinct 
animals  and  the  whole  geological  ma- 
terial in  which  everything  is  embedded. 
That  is  the  reason  why  the  finds  cannot 
be  more  exactly  dated.  They 
doubtless  belong  to  the  general 
drift,  but  whether  to  the  Post- 
glacial Period,  or  the  warmer 
Interglacial  Period,  cannot  be  decided.  The 
fauna  admits  of  no  absolute  limitation, 
owing  to  its  being  mixed  from  both  periods. 
The  mammalia  most  frequently  found  in 
the  strata  in  question  are  the  mammoth, 
Siberian  rhinoceros,  horse,  reindeer,  ure- 
ox,  giant  fallow-deer,  cave-lion,  and  cave- 
hyena.  In  very  similar  Drift  deposits  of 
the  Somme  near  Amiens  traces  of  man 
were  found  beside  the  bones  of  the  hippo- 
potamus and  the  elephant. 

These  animals  were  chiefly  prevalent 
in  France  and  Germany  in  the  Preglacial 
and  Interglacial  Periods  of  the  Drift. 
Part  of  the  animal  remains  found 
near  Abbeville,  particularly  those  of 
the  cave-lion  and  cave-hyena,  also  point 
to  the  warmer  Interglacial  Period ; 
on  the  other  hand,  the  mammoth, 
Siberian  rhinoceros,  and  especially  the 
reindeer,  appear  to  indicate  with  all  cer- 
tainty the  second  Glacial  and  Postglacial 
Periods.  The  bones  of  the  older  Drift 
animals  may  have  been  washed  out  of 
other  primary  situs :  the  reindeer  had 
certainly  already  taken  possession  of  those 
parts  of  France  when  the  relics  of  man 
were  embedded. 


Animals 
of  the 
Ice  Age 


THE    APPEARANCE    OF    MAN    ON    THE    EARTH 


In  spite  of  the  most  eager  search  for 
similar  reUc-beds  affording  sure  evidence  of 
Drift  Man,  only  a  very  few  have  as  yet 
been  discovered  that  can  be  placed  by 
the  side  of  those  in  the  Somme  valley. 
Two  are  in  Germany,  and  are  the  more 
valuable  as  a  more  exact  date  can  be 
given  to  them  within  the  Drift  Period. 
One  is  near  Taubach 
(Weimar),  the  other 
at  the  source  of  the 
Schussen.  The  one 
at  Taubach  belongs 
to  the  Interglacial 
Period,  that  at  the 
source  of  the  Schussen 
to  the  Postglacial 
Period.  The  former 
lies  on  the  moraines 
of  the  iirst  Glacial 
Period,  which  was 
followed  by  the  Inter- 
glacial Period ;  the 
latter  on  the  moraines 


given  by  the  conditions  of  stratification. 
In  the  rich  fauna  found  there,  animals 
indicating  a  cold  climate  are  entirely 
absent,  and  a  comparison  of  the  whole  of 
the  finds  proves  that  at  the  time  when 
man  was  present  there  no  kind  of  arctic 
conditions  can  have  prevailed.  There 
is  no  reindeer,  no  lemming.  The  roe, 
stag,  wolf,  brown  bear, 
beaver,  wild  boar,  and 
aurochs  were  at  that 
time  inhabitants  of 
these  regions,  and  the 
only  inference  they 
allow  is  that  of  a  tem- 
perate climate.  The 
mollusc  fauna,  in  which 
also  all  Glacial  forms 
are  absent,  also  leads  to 
the  same  conclusion  ; 
all  that  occur  are 
familiar  to  us  from 
those  of  the  present 
day      in      the      same 


Cuvier  Boucher  De  Perthes 

THE  OVERTHROW  OF  A  FAMOUS  THEORY  OF  THE  ORIGIN  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  MAN 
When  Cuvier  was  supreme  among' geologists  his  theory  that  the  great  geological  ages  ended  with  sudden  catastrophes 
which  annihilated  all  life,  and  that  all  life  was  then  created  afresh,  was  universally  accepted.  One  result  of  this  theory 
was  the  disbelief  in  the  existence  of  man  before  the  Glacial  Age.  Boucher  de  Perthes  sought  to  establish  the  former 
existence  of  Drift  Man  on  finding  human  relics  in  the  Somme  Valley  ;  but  not  until  Sir  Charles  Lyell  threw  his  influence  on 
the  side  of  De  Perthes  was  the  Preglacial  existence  of  man  admitted,  and  the  long-accepted  theory  of  Cuvier  overthrown. 


of  the  second  Glacial  Period,  which  slowly 
pa.ssed  into  the  Postglacial  Period. 

The  Drift  relic-bed  in  the  calc-tufa  near 
Taubach  lies,  as  we  have  said,  over  the 
remains  of  the  first  Glacial  Period,  and 
according  to  Penck,  one  of  the  best 
authorities  on  the  Drift,  belongs  to  the 
warmer  intermediate  epoch  between  the 
two  great  periods  of  glaciation.  The 
proofs  given  by  the  plant  and  animal 
remains   agree   entirely   with   the   proofs 


district.  The  fauna  would  really 
appear  quite  modern  were  it  not  that  a 
very  ancient  stamp  is  imparted  to  it  by 
several  extinct  types.  With  the  modern 
animals  enumerated  are  associated  the 
cave-lion,  cave-hyena,  ure-elephant,  and 
Merckian  rhinoceros,  characterising  the 
whole  deposit  as  a  distinctly  Drift  one, 
which  is  still  further  proved  stratigra- 
phically  by  the  covering  of  "  loess."  The 
Taubach  relic-bed  is  a  typical  illustration 

129 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


of  the  climatic  and  biological  conditions 
of  the  warmer  Interglacial  Period ;  the 
regions  of  Central  Europe,  which  had  been 
covered  with  masses  of  ice  in  the  first 
Glacial  Period,  had,  after  the  ice  melted, 
become  once  more  accessible  to  the 
banished  plants  and  animals  of  the 
Preglacial  Period,  until  they  were  annihi- 

lated,    or    at    least  driven  de- 

c     ima  c  ^j-jj|-gjy  fj-om  their  old  habitats 

I      A  ^y  ^^^  second  Glacial    Period. 

The  celebrated  relic-bed  at 
the  source  of  the  Schussen,  near  Schussen- 
ried,  at  a  little  distance  from  Ulm,  brings  us 
— in  strong  contrast  toTaubach — into  quite 
glacial  surroundings.  It  was  on  the  glacier- 
moraines  of  the  last  great  glaciation,  and 
belongs,  therefore,  to  that  period  which 
must  still  be  reckoned  as  part  of  the  Drift — - 
the  Postglacial  Period,  which  gradually 
passed  into  the  warmer  present  period. 
Under  the  tufa  and  peat  at  the  source  of 
the  Schussen  we  find  the  type  of  a  purely 
northern  climate,  with  exclusively  northern 
flora  and  fauna  ;  everything  corresponds 
to  climatic  conditions  such  as  prevail 
nowadays  on  the  borders  of  eternal  snow 
and  ice,  or  begin  at  70°  north  latitude. 
Schimper,  one  of  the  best  authorities  on 
mosses  at  the  present  day,  found  among 
the  plant-remains  under  the  tufa  at  the 
source  of  the  Schussen  only  mosses  of 
northern  or  high  Alpine  forms.  Among 
them  was  a  moss  brought  from  Lap- 
land by  Wahlenberg,  which,  according 
to  Schimper,  occurs  in  Norway  near 
the  chalets  on  the  Dovrefjeld,  on  the 
borders  of  eternal  snow,  and  also  in 
Greenland,  Labrador,  and  Canada,  and  on 
the  highest  summits  of  the  Tyrolese  Alps 
and  the  Sudetic  Mountains.  It  has  a 
special  preference  for  the  pools  in  which 
the  water  of  the  snow  and  glaciers  flows  off 
with  its  fine  sand.  There  were  also  found 
mosses  which  have  now  emigrated  to  cold 
regions,  to  Greenland  and  the  Alps.  The 
most  numerous  animals  were  the  reindeer, 

and   yellow  and   Arctic  foxes, 

ora  an       ^^  distinctly  Arctic  forms  ;  and 

th  "i      A      there  were  also  the  brown  bear 

and  wolf,  a  small  ox,  the  hare, 
the  large-headed  wild  horse— which  always 
occurs  in  the  Drift  as  the  companion  of 
the  reindeer — and,  lastly,  the  whistling 
swan,  which  now  breeds  in  SjMtzbcrgen 
or  Lapland.  There  is  an  absence  of  all  the 
present  animal  forms  of  Upper  Swabia,  as 
well  as  of  the  extinct  Drift  animals,  either 
of  which  would  indicate  a  warmer  climate. 
130 


More  decided  climatic  or  biological  con- 
trasts than  those  afforded  by  the  relic- 
beds  at  Taubach  and  the  source  of  the 
Schussen  could  not  be  imagined  ;  here  we 
have  with  certainty  two  perfectly  different 
periods  before  us,  but  both  belonging  to  the 
general  Drift  Era. 

Although  almost  all  the  other  places 
where  Drift  Man  has  been  found  exhibit 
peculiarities,  Taubach  and  the  source  of 
the  Schussen  seem  the  best  representatives 
of  the  two  chief  types  in  Europe.  Places 
giving  better  proof  have  not  yet  come  to 
light  anywhere  in  the  Old  World. 

At  first  sight  the  palaeontological  strata 
of  South  America,  in  which  the  presence  of 
man  has  been  proved  by  Ameghino,  appear 
to  give  a  very  different  picture.  The  ani- 
mal forms  occurring  here  contemporane- 
ously with  man  deviate  to  such  an  extent 
from  those  familiar  to  us  in  the  Drift  of  the 
Old  World  that  it  required  the  keen  eye 
and  the  complete  grasp  of  the  whole 
palasontological  material  of  the  world  that 
characterise  Von  Zittel  to  recognise  and 
establish  the  connections  here,  while  the 
discoverer  himself  thought  that  he  must 

.  date  his  discoveries  of   man 

r  ^*  e  ^i  back  to  the  Tertiary  Period. 
from  South        ^^  ,       .  i  •   1       ^^i 

.        .  the     strata     m    which     the 

America  i-      ^      .  r 

earliest    traces    of    man     as 

yet  appear  to  be  proved  in  South  America 
are  the  extensive  "  loess-like "  loam 
deposits  of  the  so-called  "  pampas " 
formation  in  Argentina  and  Uruguay, 
with  their  almost  incomparable  wealth  of 
animal  remains,  particularly  conspicuous 
among  which  are  gigantic  representatives 
of  edentates  that  now  occur  only  in  small 
species  in  South  America  :  Glyptodontia 
(with  the  gigantic  Glyptodon  reticulatinn) 
and  dasypoda  ;  also  of  the  gravigrada,  the 
giant  sloth  (Megatherium  amcricanum). 
The  toxodontia  were  also  large  animals, 
now  extinct.  But  besides  the  specifically 
South  American  forms,  numerous  "  North 
American  immigrants  "  also  appear  in  the 
pampas  formation.  It  was  only  at  the  close 
of  the  Tertiary  Period  that  the  southern  and 
northern  halves  of  America  grew  together 
into  one  continent,  and  the  faunae  of  North 
and  South  America,  so  characteristically 
different,  then  began  to  intermingle  with 
one  another.  The  South  American  autoch- 
thons migrate  northward  ;  on  the  other 
hand.  North  American  types — as  the  horse, 
deer,  tapir,  mastodon,  Felis,  Cants,  etc. — 
use  the  newly-opened  passage  to  extend 
their  range  of  distribution.    The  northern 


REVEALING    THE    UNKNOWN    LIFE    OF    THE    PREHISTORIC     PAST 


A  section  of  the  earth,    representing    excavators    in    the    act    of  disc^ermg  the  remams^  o^^^^^^^^  m  a   cave 

in  the   Sonth   of  England.       Our  iUustration   is   reproduced   from   Bucklands      Reliquiae    Uiluvianae, 


London,  1822. 


animal  forms  are  very  conspicuous  among 
the  animal  world  of  South  America,  hither- 
to cut  off  from  North  America  and  charac- 
terised by  the  above-mentioned  wonderful 
and,  in  part,  gigantic  edentates,  marsupials, 
platyrhine  apes,  etc.  Of  the  great  ele- 
phantine animals  of  North  America  only 
the  mastodon  crossed  over  to  South 
America.  In  the  middle  and  latest  Ter- 
tiary formations  the  genus  mastodon  is 
widely  distributed  over  Europe,  North 
Africa,  and  South  Asia.  In  North  America 
the  oldest  species  of  the  mastodon  appear 
in  the  Middle  Tertiary  (Upper  Miocene), 
but  the  most  species  are  found  in  the  latest 
Tertiary  (Pliocene)  and  the  Drift  (Pleisto- 
cene) ;  in  South  America  the  mastodon 
is  limited  to  the  time  of  the  pampas  forma- 
tion. Its  tusks  are  long  and  straight,  or 
slightly  curved  upward  ;  its  lower  jaw  also 
possesses  two  tusks,  which  project  in  a 
straight    direction,    bu^"    are    considerably 


less  than  the  upper  tusks  in  size.  From  the 
results  of  Ameghino's  investigations  man 
appears  to  have  come  to  South  America 
with  these  northern  immigrants,  especi- 
ally with  the  mastodon.  In  Ameghino's 
lists  of  the  animals  of  the  pampas  forma- 
tion Von  Zittel  describes  man.  like  the 
animal  forms  enumerated  above,  as  an 
immigrant  from  North  America,  and  as 
a  noithern  type. 

According  to  Von  Zittel's  statements 
there  is  no  longer  any  doubt  that  the 
pampas  formation,  and  with  it  early 
man,  of  South  America,  is  to  be  assigned 
to  the  Drift  Era ;  he  sums  up  the  case 
in  these  words  : 

In  South  Asia  and  South  America  the 
Tertiary  Period  is  followed  by  Drift  faunae, 
which  in  the  main  are  composed  of  species 
still  existing  at  the  present  day,  but  yet 
show  somewhat  closer  relations  to  their 
Tertiary  predecessors. 

131 


THE  WORLD 

BEFORE 
HISTORY— III 

^^^^ 

^ 

Professor 

JOHANNES 

RANKE 

THE    LIFE    OF    AAN    IN    THE    STONE    AGE 


""THE  oldest  remains  affording  us  know- 
•*■  ledge  of  man  are  not  parts  of  his 
body — not  the  skeleton  from  which,  in  the 
case  of  primeval  animals,  we  have  learned 
to  reconstruct  their  frame — but  evidences 
of  the  human  mind.  Until  the  discoveries  of 
Boucher  de  Perthes  turned  the  scale,  search 
had  been  made  in  vain  among  the  bones  of 
the  fossil  fauna  for  remains  of  the  skeleton 
of  fossil  man  of  undoubtedly  the  same  age  ; 
it  was  not  bones,  but  tools,  by  which  the 
Abbeville  antiquary  proved  that  man  had 
been  a  "  witness  of  the  Flood  "  in  Europe  ; 
tools  which  taught  irrefutably 
that  the  mental  powers  of  fossil 


Man  a 
Witness  of 
the  Flood 


man  of  the  Drift  were  similar 
in  kind  to,  if  possibly  less  in 
degree  than,  those  of  living  members  of 
mankind.  The  Drift  tools  prove  that, 
even  in  that  early  epoch  to  which  we 
have  learned  from  Boucher  to  trace  him 
back,  man  was  distinctively  man. 

Boucher  de  Perthes  was  an  expert  archae- 
ologist, and  he  knew  that  in  Europe,  in 
a  very  early  period  of  civilisation,  men  had 
made  their  tools  and  weapons  of  stone, 
as  many  tribes  and  races  in  a  backward 
state  of  civilisation — for  example  in  South 
America,  the  South  Sea  Islands,  and 
many  other  places — do  at  the  present  day. 
These  stone  implements  are  practically 
indestructible,  and  from  ancient  times 
manifold  superstitions  have  attached  to 
the  curious  articles  that  the  peasant  turns 
up  out  of  the  earth  in  ploughing.  Such 
stone  weapons  were  called  lightning-stones 
by  the  Romans,  as  they  are  bj'  country- 
folk at  the  })resent  day.  Scientific  archcTe- 
ology  occupied  itself  with  them  at  an  early 
date.  In  1778  Buffon  declared  the  so- 
called  lightning-stones,  or  thunder-stones, 
to  be  the  oldest  art-j^roductions  of  prime- 
val man,  and  as  early  as  1734,  Mahudel 
and  Mercati  had  pronounced  them  to 
be  the  weapons  of  antediluvian  man.  Such 
views  determined  the  line  of  thought 
in  Boucher's  researches.  From  the  very 
lieginning  he  sought,  in  the  undisturbed 
Drift  beds  of  his  home,  not  so  much  for  the 
bones  of  Drift  Man  as  for  his  tools,  which 
he  suspected   to   be  of   the   form   of   the 

132 


lightning-stones,  although  he  knew  that, 
so  far  as  was  hitherto  known,  these  be- 
longed to  a  very  much  later  epoch — that 
is,  specially  to  the  Alluvial  or  "  Recent  " 
Period. 

His  expectations  were  crowned  with 
success.  Deep  below  the  mass  of  over- 
lying loam  and  sand,  right  in  the  strata 
of  gravel  and  coarse  sand,  he  found  stone 
tools,  which  without  the  slightest  doubt 
had  been  worked  by  the  hand  of  man  for 
definite  and  easily  recognisable  purposes 
as  implements  and  weapons.  Although  to 
a  certain  extent  ruder,  they  are  practically 
the  same  forms  as  the  tools,  weapons, 
and  implements  of  stone  that  we  see 
in  use  among  so-called  "  savages  "  of  the 
present  day.  It  is  the  tool  artificially 
prepared  for  a  certain  purpose  that  raises 
man  above  the  animal  world  to-day,  as 
it  did  in  the  time  of  the  Drift. 

Upon  his  first  visit  to  the  relic-beds  near 
Abbeville  in  the  spring  of  1859,  Lyell 
had  obtained  seventy  specimens  of  these 
stone  tools  from  the  chief  of  them.  The 
tools  were  all  of  flint,  which  occurs  in 
abundance  in  the  chalk  of  the  district,  and 
is  still  obtained  and  worked  for  technical 
purposes  at  the  present  day.  The  worked 
stones  that  Boucher  found  were  termed 
flint  or  silex  tools,  according  to  the  ma- 
terial of  which  they  were  made.  They 
occurred  in  the  particular  beds,  as  Lyell 
expressed  it,  in  wonderful  quan- 


Drift  Man's 


titles. 


_,.        „.    .    ..v.^...     The    famous    geologist 
Tliree  Kinds  j-   ,  •  •  i     j  .  i  i  ■   r  r 

J.  ™    .         distinguished  three  chief  forms. 

The  first  is  the  spear-head  form, 
and  varies  in  length  from  six  to  eight 
inches.  The  second  is  the  oval  form,  not 
unlike  many  stone  implements  and  weapons 
that  are  still  used  as  axes  and  toma- 
hawks at  the  present  day — for  instance, 
by  the  aborigines  of  Australia.  The 
only  difference  is  that  the  edge  of  the 
Australian  stone  axes,  like  that  of  the 
European  implements  of  later  periods  of 
civilisation  known  as  thunderbolts  or 
lightning-stones,  is  mostly  ])roduced  by 
grinding,  whereas  on  the  stone  axes  from 
the  drift  of  the  Somme  valley  it  has  always 
been    obtained    by   simply    chipping    the 


THE    LIFE    OF    MAN    IN    THE    STONE     AGE 


Stone,  and  by  repeated,  skilfully  directed 
blows.  According  to  Tylor  the  stone  im- 
plements of  the  old  Tasmanians  were 
entirely  of  Drift  form  and  make,  all  with- 
out traces  of  grinding,  being  simply  angu- 
lar stones  whose  cutting-edge  had  been 
sharpened  by  being  worked  with  a  second 
stone.  Some  of  these  stone  implements 
of  Drift  Man  may  have  been 
simply  used  in  the  hand  when 
the  natural  form  of  the  stone 
offered  a  convenient  end,  but 
the  majority  were  certainly  fastened  in 
a  handle  in  some  way  or  other,  to  serve 
as  weapons— spear-heads  or  daggers— 
both    for   war    and    the    chase.        Lyell's 


The  Chief 
Forms 
of  Tools 


large  number  of  very  rude  specimens 
have  also  been  found,  of  which  many  may 
have  been  thrown  away  as  spoiled  in  the 
making,  and  others  may  have  been  only 
rubbish  produced  in  the  working.  Evans 
has  practically  proved  that  it  is  possible 
to  produce  such  stone  implements  in 
their  remarkable  agreement  of  form  with- 
out the  use  of  metal  hammers.  He  made  a 
stone  hammer  by  fastening  a  flint  in  a 
wooden  handle,  and  worked  another  piece 
of  flint  with  this  until  it  had  assumed  the 
shape  of  the  axe  form— the  second,  oval 
form— of    the    Drift    implements. 

Lyell  draws  attention  to  the  fact  that, 
in  spite  of  the  relatively  great  frequency 


HOW    PREHISTORIC    MANKIND    IS    REVEALED  ^   ■    j     .u 

Most  of  our  knowledge  of  the  earliest  life  of  man  has  been  revealed  by  the  excavator.     When  at  a  certain  depth 


second  chief  form  would  have  been  used 
as  an  axe  for  such  purposes  as  digging  up 
roots,  felling  trees,  and  hollowing  out 
canoes,  or  to  cut  holes  in  the  ice  for  fishing 
and  forgetting  drinking  water  in  the  winter. 
In  the  hand  of  the  hunter  and  warrior 
the  stone  axe  also  became  a  weapon.  As 
the  third  form  of  stone  implements  Lyell 
distinguished  knife-shaped  flakes,  some 
pointed,  others  of  oval  form  or  trimmed 
evenly  at  one  end,  obviously  intended 
partly  as  knives  and  arrow-heads,  and 
partly  as  scrapers  for  technical  purposes. 

Although  there  are  many  variations 
between  the  first  two  chief  forms,  yet  the 
typical  difference  indicating  the  different 
purpose  of  their  use  is  always  easily 
recognised  in  well-finished  examples.     A 


of  stone  implements,  it  would  be  a  great 
mistake  to  rely  on  finding  a  single  specimen, 
even  if  one  occupied  himself  for  weeks 
together  in  examining  the  Somme  valley. 
Only  a  few  lay  on  the  surface,  the  rest  not 
coming  to  light  until  after  removing 
enormous  masses  of  sand,  loam,  and  gravel. 
As  we  may  presume  with  Lyell  that  the 
larger  number  of  the  Drift 
stone  implements  of  Abbeville 


Lyell's  Find 
in  the 
Somme  Valley 


and  Amiens  were  brought  into 
their  position  by  the  action 
of  the  river,  this  sufficiently  explains  why 
so  many  were  found  at  great  depths  below 
the  surface  ;  for  they  must  naturally  have 
been  buried  in  the  gravel  with  the 
other  stones  in  places  where  the  stream 
had  still  sufacient   force   or   rapidity   to 

133 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


THE 


Making   an    axehead   of  flint,   like   that   photographed  on 
the    opposite    page.     From   the    painting   by  F.   Cormon. 


wash  stones  away.  They  can,  therefore, 
not  be  found  in  deposits  from  still  water, 
in  fine  sediment  and  overflow  mud. 

Bones  of  Drift  Man  are  absent  from  the 
deposits  of  the  Somme  valley,  in  spite  o 
the  wonderful  abundance  of  stone  im- 
l)lements.  The  "  lower  jaw  from  Moulin- 
Ouignon,  near  Abbeville,"  had  been 
fraudulently  placed  there  by  workmen. 
But  proof  of  the  existence  of  man  is 
undeniably  assured  by  the  objects,  so 
un[)retentious  in  themselves,  that  have 
been  recognised  as  the  work  of  his  hands. 

When  once  the  recognition  of  Drift 
]\hm,  founded  on  the  authority  of  Lyell, 
was  achieved,  search  for  further  relic- 
beds  was  made  in  England  and  France 
with  success.  Yet  scarcely  one  of  the 
newly  discovered  stations  was  to  be 
compared  to  those  of  the  Somme  valley 
as  regards  purity  of  stratification  and 
conditions  of  discovery.  The  relics  of 
the  "  earliest  Stone  Age  "  or  "  Palaeo- 
lithic Period,"  as  the  period  of  Drift 
Man  was  called,  frequently  came  from 
caves  and  grottos,  whose  primary  conclu- 
siveness Boucher  had  rightly  doubted. 

Under  these  circumstances  it  was  of 
the  greatest  importance  that  in  Ger- 
many Drift  Man  was  discovered  in  two 
places,  where  not  only  was  the  geologi- 
cal stratification  just  as  clear  as  at 
Abbeville  and  Amiens,  but  where  also 
the  relics  of  Drift  Man  were  found,  not 
in  a  secondary  situs,  as  they  were  then, 
but  in  a  primary  one.  In  addition  to 
this  the  two  German  relic-beds  may  be 
safely  assigned  to  the  last  two  great 
divisions  of  the  Drift  Period,  to  the 
warmer  Interglacial  Period,  and  to  the 
cold  Glacial  Period  proper,  with  its  Post- 
glacial Period  ;  and  their  climatic  condi- 
tions were  made  clear  from  the  remains 
of  i^lants  and  animals  found  in  them. 

From  the  occurrence,  in  the  deposits  of 
the  Somme,  of  reindeer  that  contain  the 
stone  implements  of  Drift  Man,  we  can 
not,  as  we  saw,  exactly  settle  in  what 
part  of  the  Drift  Era  man  lived  there, 
whether  in  the  Interglacial  Period,  to 
which  numerous  animal  remains  found 
there  doubtless  belong,  or  not  until  the 
"  Reindeer"  Period,  as  the  last  Glacial 
and  early  Postglacial  Periods  were  called, 
when  the  reindeer  was  most  largely 
distributed  over  France  and  Central 
Europe.  One  is  inclined  to  date  man's 
habitation  of  the  Somme  valley  back  to 
the  Interglacial  Period  ;  but  it  is  certain 


134 


THE    LIFE    OF    MAN    IN    THE    STONE    AGE 


that  the  relic-bed  near  Taubachis  the  first, 
and,  as  far  as  I  can  see,  the  only  one 
hitherto,  that  has  given  sure  proof  of  Inter- 
glacial  Man  in  Europe.  There  the  oldest 
vestiges  of  man  in  Europe  were  found  that 
have  yet  been  absolutely  proved.  We  have 
not  hitherto  succeeded  in  Europe  in 
tracing  man  farther  back  than  the  Inter- 
glacial  Period.  Relics  of  him  are  hitherto 
as  absent  in  the 
older  Drift  as 
they  are  in  the 
Tertiary. 

The  Taubach 
r  e  1  i  c-b  e  d  also 
furnished  n  o 
bones  of  Drift 
Man  among  all 
the  parts  of 
skeletons  of  Drift 
animals  that  we 
have  mentioned. 
Here,  too,  as  in 
the  Somme  val- 
ley, the  proof  of 
the  presence  of 
man  is  based  on 
the  works  of  his 
hand  and  mind. 
Here,  too,  stone 
implements  and 
stone  weapons 
are  the  chief 
things  1  o  be 
mentioned.  But 
whereas,  in  the 
chalk  district  of 
France,  flints  of 
every  size  were 
to  be  had  in  the 
greatest  abun- 
dance for  the 
preparation  of 
weapons  and 
tools,  corre- 
sponding stones 
are  not  exactly 
wanting  at  the 
two        standard  ^   workman's   tool 

German      places,     p,i„t  implement  found  in  Gray's  Ini 

though  they  oc- 
cur in  limited  number  and  size.  It  is  due 
to  this  that  the  larger  forms  of  flint  imple- 
ments, which  are  most  in  evidence  in  the 
Somme  valley,  are  absent  at  Taubach.  On 
the  other  hand,  smaller  "knives  and 
flakes  "— Lyell's  third  form  of  Drift  flint 
implements — occur  here  with  comparative 
frequency  and  variety  of  form.     Next  to 


the  usual  lancet-shaped  knife,  worked 
flint  flakes,  of  triangular  prismatic  form, 
with  sharp  corners,  are  most  numerous  at 
Taubach,  and  scrapers,  chisels,  awls,  and 
the  chipping-stones  with  which  the  stone 
implements  were  produced  may  also  be 
distinguished  among  other  things.  The 
material  for  the  implements  was  supplied 
by  the  older  Drift  debris  of  the  valley — 

namely,        flint. 


•■*'*>> 


flinty  slate,  and 
quartz  porphyry. 
Besides  the 
stone  imple- 
ments which 
alone  were  ob- 
served in  the 
Somme  valley, 
still  further  im- 
portant relics 
were  found  here 
in  their  primary 
s  i  t  u  s.  Above 
all,  numerous 
finds  of  charcoal 
and  burnt  bones 
prove  that  the 
Drift  Men  of 
Taubach  not 
only  knew  how 
to  kindle  fire,  but 
were  also  accus- 
tomed to  roast 
the  flesh  of  the 
animals  they 
killed  in  the 
chase.  Stones 
and  pieces  of 
shell  limestone 
also  occur  which 
have  become 
reddish  and  hard 
from  the  action 
of  heat.  These 
are  to  be  re- 
garded .  as  the 
floors  and  side- 
walls  of  the  fire- 
places on  which 
the  food  was 
then  and  there 
prepared.  The  animal  bones,  especially 
those  that  were  taken  up  from  around 
the  fireplace,  appear  in  most  cases 
to  be  remains  of  meals.  This  is  shown 
at  once  by  the  fact  that  bones  of  young 
representatives  of  the  large  beasts  of 
the  chase — such  as  the  rhinoceros,  ele- 
phant, and   bear — are    very  frequent    as 

135 


IN    THE    STONE    AGE 
London  ;  now  in  British  Museum, 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


compared   with    the    rare    occurrence    of 
full-grown  animals. 

It  appears  that  in  the  hunting  and 
capture  of  animals  the  young  ones  were 
most  easily  killed,  and  therefore  served 
chiefly  as  food.  Whenever  a  large  animal 
was  killed,  it  was  probably  cut  up  on  the 
spot  by  the  fortunate  hunters,  who 
consumed  at  once  part  of  its 
flesh ;  the  trunk  was  then  left 
g  .  at  the  scene  of  the  killing, 
while  the  head,  neck,  and  fore 
and  hind  legs,  on  which  was  the  most 
muscular  flesh,  and  which  were  at  the 
same  time  easier  to  carry  away,  were 
taken  to  the  settlement.  This  may  explain 
why,  among  the  many  large  bones  of  the 
rhinoceros  that  have  hitherto  been  found, 
the  ribs  and  the  dorsal  and  lumbar 
vertebrae  are  almost  entirely  absent. 
Some  of  the  bones  of  the  beasts  of  the 
chase  bear  the  unmistakable  traces  of 
man.  They  are  broken  in  the  manner 
characteristic  of  "  savages  "  of  all  ages 
and  climes — for  the  sake  of  the  marrow, 
one  of  the  greatest  dainties  of  men  living 
chiefly  on  animal  fare.  The  broken-oft" 
heads  of  the  metatarsal  bones  of  the 
bison  still  show  particularly  clearly  the 
method  of  breaking.  They  are  broken 
off  transversely  exactly  where  the  marrow 
canal  ends,  and  on  all  these  bones  there 
is  a  roundish  depression,  or  hole,  at  the 
same  place — namely,  in  the  middle  of  their 
front  or  back  surface,  and  just  where 
the  end  of  the  marrow  canal  is,  therefore 
about  in  the  centre  of  the  break  of  the 
broken-off  i^ece.  The  hole  is  a  "  blow- 
mark  "  of  one  inch  in  diameter,  evidently 
driven  in  by  force  from  without,  as  several 
well-preserved  specimens  still  show  the 
edges  and  splinters  of  bone  j^ressed 
inward.  These  sj)linters  and  all  the 
breaks  are  old,  and  have  on  the  surface 
the  same  greasy  coating,  full  of  the  sand 
in  which  tlu-y  lay,  as  the  bones  themselves. 
The    instrument    used    for    breaking    the 

•J       «,.,»*      bones  in  this  way  might  very 
How  Drift  Man         ,,    ,  ,  .11 

.  .,,    .  ..  well  nave    been    the    lower 

Killed  the  ,        ,  V.1      i     1 

/-      .  A   •     1     jaw  of  a  bear  with  its  large 

Great  Animals    ■"•,,,  <--.  ,-     " 

canine  tooth,  as  Oscar  I^raas 
has  ascertained  to  have  been  the  case  in 
other  places  where  Drift  Man  has  been 
found.  Such  lower  jaws  were  found  at 
Taubach,  and  the  nature  and  size  of 
the  hole  and  its  edges  agree  with  this 
assumj)tion.  The  long  bones  of  the 
elephant  and  rhinoceros  were  whole. 
Drift  Man  did  not  succeed  in  breaking 
136 


these  huge  pieces,  and  where  such  bones 
are  found  broken  they  are  accidental 
fractures.  On  the  other  hand,  almost 
all  bones  of  the  bear  and  bison  are  inten- 
tionally split — in  almost  all  cases  trans- 
versely,   and    seldom    lengthways. 

In  the  Somme  valley  we  have  only  the 
flint  implements — which,  although  rude, 
are  very  regularly  and  uniformly  made 
for  different  recognisable  purposes — to 
tell  us  of  the  life  and  state  of  Drift  Man  ; 
but  the  finds  at  Taubach  afford  us  a  rather 
closer  insight  into  the  conditions  of  his 
life  and  culture.  What  we  had  suspected 
from  the  first  finds  is  confirmed  here. 
During  the  Interglacial  Period  we  see 
near  Taubach,  on  the  old  watercourse 
of  the  Ilm,  which  had  there  at  that  time 
become  dammed  up  into  a  kind  of  pond, 
a  human  settlement.  This  was  occupied 
for  a  long  period,  as  is  proved  by  the 
large  number  of  bones,  evidently  remains 
of  meals,  and  by  the  quantity  of  charcoal. 
Immediately  on  the  bank  were  the  fire- 
places— rude  hearths  built  of  the  stones 
obtained  without  trouble  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood. Here  the  flesh  of  the  beasts 
of  the  chase,  the  bison  and 
the  bear,  and  also  the  elephant 
and  rhinoceros,  was  broiled  in  a 
crude  manner  in  the  hot  ashes, 
as  is  still  done  by  savages  on  the  level 
of  the  Fuegians  and  primitive  tribes  of 
Central  Brazil  at  the  present  day.  For 
this  no  utensils  are  required,  a  sharjiened 
rod  or  thin  pointed  stick  being  sufficient 
for  turning  and  taking  out  the  pieces  of 
meat.  The  ashes  that  the  gravy  causes 
to  adhere  su})ply  the  place  of  salt  and 
other  seasoning.  The  meat  was  cut  up 
with  the  stone  knives,  and  many  traces 
of  cuts  on  the  bones  may  also  be  attri- 
butable to  these  instruments.  For  cutting 
out  larger  ]iortions  a  powerful  and  very 
suitable  instrument  was  at  hand,  in  the 
lower  jaw  of  the  bear,  with  its  strong 
canine  tooth,  which  also  serv^ed  for  break- 
ing bones  to  obtain  the  marrow.  In 
spite  of  the  apparent  meanness  of  the 
weapons,  remains  of  which  we  have  found, 
the  Drift  Men  of  Taubach  were  yet  able, 
as  their  kitchen  refuse  })roves,  not  only 
to  kill  the  bison  and  bear,  but  also  the 
gigantic  ele|)hant  and  rhinoceros,  both 
young  and  full  grown. 

This  shows  man  to  have  been  then,  as 
he  is  to-day,  master  even  of  the  gigantic 
animal  forms  which  so  far  surpass  him 
in  mechanical  strength.     It  is  the  mind 


Drift  Man 

at 

his  Meals 


WEAPONS    OF    THE    CHASE    USED     BY    PREHISTORIC     MAN 
A  collection  of  neolithic  lance  and  arrow  heads  found  in  Ireland,  now  to  be  seen  in  the  British  Museum. 


of  man  that  shows  itself  superior  to  the 
most  powerful  brute  force,  even  where 
we  meet  him  for  the  first  time.  From 
the  finds  in  the  Somme  valley  it  appears 
that  Drift  Man  already  possessed  spear, 
dagger,  and  axe,  besides  the  knife,  as 
weapons.  There  the  blades  were  of  stone. 
The  relatively  small  blades  of  the  Taubach 
stone  implements  are,  it  is  true,  of  the 
same  character  as  the  stone  implements 
of  Abbeville  and  Amiens,  but  they  are 
chiefly,  as  we  have  said,  merely  knife- 
like articles,  very  suitable  as  blades  for 
knives,  scrapers,  and  daggers,  and  as 
arrow-heads,   but   not   strong   enough   as 

T»  -rx  m.  hunting-weapons  for  such  big 
Drift  Man  °  -ru      i.       j.  j.    ±v. 

game.      Ihe  hunt  must,  there- 

*!.  u  *  fore,  have  been  more  a  matter 
the  Hunt  r  ,  .,  ,  , 

of  capture  m  pits  and  traps,  as 

practised  at  the  present  day  where  similar 

large    types    of    animals    are    hunted    by 

tribes  armed  only  with  defective  weapons. 

The  kitchen  refuse  also  proves  that  the 

settlement  by  the  Ilm  pond,  near  Taubach, 

was  a  permanent  one,  to  which  the  hunters 

returned  after  their  expeditions,  bringing 

their  game  and  trophies  so  far  as  they 

were  easily  transj)ortable.     But   there  is 

no  trace  of  domestic  animals.     They  could 

not    have    completely    disappeared,    any 

more  than  remains  of  clay  vessels,  which 

are  still  less  destructible  than  bones,  and 

in  this  respect  may  be  compared  to  stone 

138 


implements.    There  was  no  trace  of  pot- 
sherds either. 

The  finds  in  the  Somme  valley  and  near 
Taubach  are  of  incalculable  importance 
as  sure,  indisputable  proofs  of  Drift  Man 
in  Europe  ;  but  as  regards  the  wealth 
of  information  to  be  derived  from  them 
respecting  man's  psychical  condition  in 
that  first  period  in  which  we  can  prove 
his  existence,  they  are  far  and  away 
surpassed  by  the  find  at  the  source  of 
the  Schussen,  which  Oscar  Fraas,  the 
celebrated  geologist,  has  personally  in- 
ventoried and  described.  Fraas  has 
rightly  given  to  his  description  of  this  find 
of    Glacial    Man — the    most 


The  Best  ,       ,  J     1       - 

"Find"    fth    i™Po^tant    and    best    exam 

Ice  Age 


ined  hitherto — the  title  "Con- 
tributions to  the  History  of 
Civilisation  During  the  Glacial  Period."  . 
The  geognostic  stratification  of  the 
relic-bed  on  one  of  the  farthest  advanced 
moraines  of  the  Upper  Swabian  plateau 
proves  that  it  belongs  to  the  Glacial  Period, 
and  that  this  had  already  pushed  its 
glacier-moraines  to  the  farthest  limit  ever 
reached.  In  point  of  time  the  finds 
are,  therefore,  to  be  placed  at  the  end 
of  the  Glacial  Period,  as  it  was  passing 
into  the  Postglacial  Period ;  everything 
still  points  to  Far  Northern  conditions 
of  life.  The  finds  at  the  source  of  the 
Schussen  are  thus  decidedly  more  recent, 


IMPLEMENTS    OF    THE    STONE    AGE    AND    THEIR    MAKING 
The  methods  of  holding  a  hammer-stone  and  of  making  a  flint  by  pressure  are  illustrated  at  the  top,  those  of  usine 
a  chopping:  tool  at  the  bottom,  of  this   plate.       The  other  objects  are   spear-heads,  axes,  and  hammers   of  stone 
and   Hmt,   and  javehn-heads  of   horn,    the  latter   being  smooth   and   barbed.      The   method  of  tying  a   flint  chisel 
to   a  wooden  handle  is   shown   at  the  right  (x).     Most  of  these  objects  are  to  be  seen  in  the  British  Museum. 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


geologically,  than  those  made  at  Taubach. 
They  are  a  typical,  or,  better,  the  typical 
example  of  the  so-called  "  Reindeer  Period" 
of  the  end  of  the  Drift. 

From  Fraas's  description  there  seems 
to  be  no  doubt  whatever  that  the  relic- 
bed,  with  its  remains  of  civilisation,  was 
perfectly  undisturbed,  and  its  palseonto- 
logical  contents  plainly  show 
its  great  geological  age.  It  was 
perfectly  protected  by  Nature. 
On  the  top  lies  peat,  the  same 
that  covers  the  lowlands  of  the 
whole  neighbourhood  for  miles, 
and  forms  the  extensive  moor- 
lands of  Upper  Swabia,  on  which 
)io  other  formations  are  to  be 
seen  than  the  gravel  drift-walls 


hundred  square  yards  in  extent,  and  only 
four  to  five  feet  deep  in  the  purest  glacier 
drift,  clearly  showing  that  the  excellent 
preservation  of  the  bones  and  bone  imple- 
ments was  solely  due  to  the  water  having 
remained  in  the  moss  and  sand.  The  bank 
of  moss  was  like  a  saturated  sponge  ;  it 
closed  up  its  contents  hermetically  from 
the  air,  and  preserved  in  its 
ever-damp  bosom  what  had 
been  entrusted  to  it  thousands 
of  years  before. 

Under  the  peat  and  tufa  at 
the  source  of  the  Schussen  we 
find  only  the  type  of  a 
purely  Northern  climate,  with 
Northern  flora  and  Northern 
fauna.  There  are  no  remains 
of      domestic      animals  —  not 


throwri   up  by  glaciers  of  the  ^^^^^  drinking  vessel  ,      , 

Drift  Period.     Under  the  peat   Reindeers  skuii  used  as  drink-  even    of     the     dog,    nor    any 

lies  a  laver  of   calc-tufa,   four   '"^^  ^^ssei  by  men  of  the  stone   bones  of  the  stag,  roe,  chamois, 

-  -    -  '  Age.  British  Museum  collection.  c?'  '  ' 

'  Everything    corre- 


to  five  feet  thick,  a  fresh-water 
formation  from  the  water-courses  that 
now  unite  with  the  source  of  the  Schus- 
sen. Under  this  protecting  cover  of  tufa 
were  the  remains  of  the  Glacial  Period 
and  Glacial  Man.  The  tufa  covered  a 
bed  of  moss  of  a  dark  brown  colour, 
inclining  to  green,  the  moss  still  splen- 
didly preserved.  Under  this  bed  of  moss 
was  the  glacier  drift.  The  moss  was 
dripping  full  of  water  and  intermingled 
with  moist  sand.  In  it  were  the  relics 
of  Glacial  Man — all  lying  in  heaps  as 
fresh  and  firm  as  if  they  had  been  only 
recently  collected.  A  stirkv.  dark-brown 
mud  filled  the 
moss  and  sand 
and  the  smallest 
hollow  spaces  of 
antlers  and  bones, 
and  emitted  a 
musty  smell. 

Glacial  Man  had 
used  the  place  as 
a  refuse -pit. 
Among  the  bones 
and  splinters  of 
bone  of  animals 
that  had  been 
slaughtered  and 
consumed  by  man,  among  ashes  and 
charred  remans,  among  smoke-stained 
hearthstones  and  the  traces  of  fire,  there 
lay  here,  one  upon  the  other,  numerous 
knives,  arrow  -  heads,  and  lance  -  heads 
of  flint,  and  the  most  varied  kinds 
of  hand-made  articles  of  reindeer  horn. 
All  this  was  in  a  shallow  pit  about  seven 

140 


TREASURE-STORES  OF  PRIMEVAL  KNOWLEDGE 
Such  to-day  are  the  mounds  of  prehistoric  rubbish  accumulated 
bjr  the  people  of  the  Stone  Age.  These  Danish  "kitchen 
_:  jj —  '   i^a,ve  vastly  enriched  our  knowledge  of  the  remote  past. 


middens ' 


or  ibex, 
sponds  to  a  Northern  climate,  such  as 
begins  to-day  at  70°  north  latitude.  We 
see  Upper  Swabia  traversed  by  moraines 
and  melting  glaciers,  whose  waters  wash 
the  glacier-sand  into  moss-grown  pools. 
We  find  a  Greenland  moss  covering  the 
wet  sands  in  thick  banks  ;  between  the 
moraines  of  the  glaciers  we  have  to 
imagine  wide  green  pastures,  rich  enough 
to  support  herds  of  reindeer,  which  roved 
about  there  as  they  do  in  Greenland,  or 
on  the  forest  borders  of  Norway  and 
Siberia,  at  the  present  day.  Here,  also, 
are  the  regions  of  tlie  rarnivora  dangerous 

to  the  reindeer — 

the  glutton  and 
the  wolf,  and,  in 
the  second  rank, 
the  bear  and  Arc- 
tic fox. 

According  to 
Fraas,  it  is  on  this 
scene  that  man  of 
the  Glacial  Period 
appears;  in  all  pro- 
bability, a  hunter, 
invited  by  the  pre- 
sence of  the  rein- 
deer to  spend  some 
time — probably  only  the  better  portion  of 
the  year — on  the  borders  of  ice  and  snow. 
It  is  true  that  the  relic-bed  that  tells  of 
his  life  and  doings  is  only  a  refuse-pit, 
which  contains  nothing  good  in  the  way  of 
art  productions,  but  only  broken  or  spoiled 
articles  and  refuse  from  the  manufacture 
of  implements.    The  bulk  of  the  material 


141 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


consists  of  kitchen  refuse,  such  as,  besides 

charcoal  and  ashes,  opened  marrow-bones 

and  broken  skulls  of  game.     Not  one  of 

the   bones   found  here  shows   a  trace  of 

any  other  instrument  than  a  stone.      It 

was  on  a  stone  that  the  bone  was  laid, 

and  it  was  with  a  stone  that  the  blow  was 

struck.  Such  breaking-stones  came  to  light 

in  large  numbers.    They  were 

History  merely  field  stones  collected  on 

If  *  .  ^  „       the  spot,  particular  preference 

Rubbish  Heap ,     .     ^      .  ^  ^      i  ii„j 

bemg  given  to   finely    rolled 

quartz  boulders  of  about  the  size  of  a 
man's  fist.  Others  were  rather  rudely 
formed  into  the  shape  of  a  club,  with  a 
kind  of  handle,  such  as  is  produced  half 
accidentally  and  half  intentionally  in  split- 
ting large  pieces.  Larger  stones  were  also 
found — gneiss  slabs,  from  one  to  two  feet 
square,  slaty  Alpine  limes,  and  rough 
blocks  of  one  stone  or  another,  which  had 
probably  represented  slaughtering-blocks, 
or  done  duty  as  hearthstones,  as  on  many 
of  them  traces  of  fire  were  visible.  Where 
these  stones  had  stood  near  the  fire  they 
were  scaled,  and  all  were  more  or  less 
blackened  by  charcoal.  Smaller  pieces  of 
slate  and  slabs  of  sandstone  blackened  by 
fire  may  have  supplied  the  place  of  clay 
pottery  in  many  respects  ;  for,  with  all 
the  blackened  stones,  not  a  fragment  of  a 
clay  vessel  was  found  in  the  layers  of  char- 
coal and  ashes  of  the  relic-bed. 

The  flint  implements  are  of  the  form 
familiar  to  us  from  Taubach  and  the 
Somme  valley,  being  simply  chipped,  not 
ground  or  polished.  At  the  source  of  the 
Schussen,  also,  only  comparatively  small 
pieces  of  the  precious  raw  material  were 
found  for  the  manufacture  of  stone  imple- 
ments. So  that  here,  too,  as  at  Taubach, 
Lyell's  third  form,  the  knife  or  flake,  was 
practically  the  only  one  represented.  They 
fall  into  two  groups — pointed  lancet- 
shaped  knives  and  blunt  saw-shaped  stones. 
The  former  served  as  knife-blades  and 
dagger-blades,  and  lance-heads  and  arrow- 
heads   ;    the  latter  represented 

«*-Jw  .  the  blades  of  the  tools  required 
Drift  Man  s    r  ,  •  •    j         i         ^    t-i. 

~,    .  tor  workmg  remdeer  horn.    1  he 

larger  implements  are  between 
one  and  a  quarter  and  one  and  a  half 
inches  broad  and  three  to  three  and  a  half 
inches  long  ;  but  the  majority  of  them 
are  far  smaller,  being  about  one  and  a  half 
inches  long  and  only  three-eighths  of  an 
inch  broad.  The  various  flint  blades  ap- 
pear to  have  been  used  in  handles  and 
hafts  of  reindeer  horn.  Numerous  pieces 
142 


occur  which  can  only  be  explained  as 
such  handles,  either  ready  or  in  course  of 
manufacture. 

Moreover,  owing  to  the  want  of  larger 
flints,  numerous  weapons,  instruments, 
and  implements  were  carved  from  rein- 
deer horn  and  bone  for  use  in  the  chase 
and  in  daily  life.  Fraas  has  ascertained 
exactly  the  technical  process  employed  in 
producing  articles  of  reindeer  horn,  and 
we  see  with  wonder  how  the  Glacial  men 
of  Swabia  handled  their  defective  carving- 
knives  and  saws  on  the  very  principle 
of  modern  technics.  They  are  principally 
weapons — for  example,  long  pointed  bone 
daggers,  otherwise  mostly  punchers,  awls, 
plaiting-needles  (of  wood),  and  arrow- 
heads with  notched  grooves.  These  may 
possibly  be  poison-grooves  ;  other  trans- 
verse grooves  may  have  served  partly  for 
fastening  the  arrow-head  by  means  of 
some  thread-like  binding  material,  prob- 
ably twisted  from  reindeer  sinews,  as  is 
done  by  the  Reindeer  Lapps  at  the  present 
day  ;   other  scratches  occur  as  ornaments. 

The  forms  of  the  bone  implements  show 
generally  a  decided  sense  of  symmetry 
TL  CI  -11  J  ^^^  ^  certain  taste.  For  in- 
The  Skilled  g^^^^g^  ^  dagger,  with  a  perfor- 

f  th  ^^ft  ^^^^  knob  for  suspension,  and  a 
large  carefully-carved  fish-hook. 
Groove-like  or  hollow  spoon-shaped  pieces 
of  horn  were  explained  by  Fraas  to  be 
cooking  and  eating  utensils  ;  probably 
they  also  served  for  certain  technical 
purposes — as  for  dressing  skins  for  clothing 
and  tents,  like  the  stone  scrapers  found  in 
the  Somme  valley.  A  doubly  perforated 
piece  of  a  young  reindeer's  antler  appears 
to  be  an  arrow-stretching  apparatus,  like 
those  generally  finely  ornamented,  used 
by  the  Esquimaux  for  the  same  pur- 
pose. A  branch  of  a  reindeer's  antlers, 
with  deep  notches  filed  in,  is  declared  by 
the  discoverer  to  be  a  "  tally."  The 
notches  are  partly  simple  strokes  filed  in 
to  the  depth  of  a  twelfth  of  an  inch,  and 
partly  two  main  strokes  connected  by 
finer  ones.  "The  strokes,"  says  Fraas, "  are 
plainly  numerical  signs — a  kind  of  note, 
probably,  of  reindeer  or  bears  killed,  or 
some  other  memento."  Among  the  objects 
found  were  also  pieces  of  red  paint  of  the 
size  of  a  nut — clearly  fabrications  of  clayey 
ironstone,  ground  and  washed,  and  pro- 
bably mixed  with  reindeer  fat  and  kneaded 
into  a  paste.  The  paint  crumbled  between 
the  fingers,  felt  greasy,  and  coloured  the 
skin  an  intense  red.      It  may  have  been 


HUNTING    FOR     FOOD     IN    THE    LATER    ICE 
From  the  painting  by  Ferdinand  Cormon 


AGE 


used  in  the  first  instance  for  painting  the 
body.  The  Glacial  men  at  the  source  of  the 
Schussen  were,  according  to  the  results  of 
these  finds,  fishermen  and  hunters,  with- 
out dogs  or  domestic  animals  and  without 
any  knowledge  of  agriculture  and  pottery. 
But  they  understood  how  to  kindle  fire, 
which  they  used  for  cooking  their  food. 
They  knew  how  to  kill  the  wild  reindeer, 
bear,  and  other  animals  of  the  district  they 
hunted  over  ;  their  arrows  hit  the  swan, 
and  their  fish-hooks  drew  fish  from  the 
deep.    They  were  artists  in  the  chipping 


of  flint  into  tools  and  weapons  ;  with  the 
former  they  worked  reindeer  horn  in  the 
most  skilful  manner.  Traces  of  binding 
material  indicate  the  use  of  threads, 
probably  prepared  from  reindeer  sinews  ; 
the  plaiting-needle  may  have  been  em- 
ployed for  making  fishing-lines.  Threads 
and  finely-pointed  pricking  instruments 
indicate  the  art  of  sewing ;  clothing 
probably  consisted  of  the  skins  of  the 
animals  killed. 

To  this  material  concerning  Drift  Man, 
scientificaUy   vouched   for,    coming   from 

143 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


IMPLEMENTS    OF    THE    STONE    AGE 
The  upper  illustrations   show  handles   of  celt   or  stone- 
cutting     instruments     and     method     of     hafting  ;      the 
lower    picture    is    that    of    a    handmill    of    sandstone. 

Drift  strata  that  have  certainly  never 
been  disturbed,  other  countries  have 
hitherto  made  no  equal  contributions 
really  enlarging  our  view.  Yet  the  numer- 
ous places  where  palaeolithic — that  is, 
only  rudely  chipped — implements  of  flint, 
such  as  were  doubtless  used  by  Drift  Man, 
have  been  found  must  not  remain  un- 
mentioned  here.  We  know  of  them  in 
Northern,  Central,  and  Southern  France, 
in  the  South  of  England,  in  the  loess  at 
Thiede,  near  Brunswick,  and  in  Lower 
Austria,  Moravia,  Hungary,  Italy,  Greece, 
Spain,  Portugal,  North  Africa,  and  Russia. 


A    HUT-CIRCLE    OF    THE    BRONZE    AGE 

One  of  the  earliest  forms  of  habitation  in  Britain.     From 

the  British  Museum  "Guide  to  the  Bronze  Age." 

It  is  of  special  importance  to  note  that 
similar  flint  tools  have  also  been  found 
along  with  extinct  land  mammalia  in  the 
stratified  drift  of  the  Nerbudda  valley,  in 
South  India,  as  the  supposition  more  than 
suggests  itself  that  Drift  Man  came  to  our 
continent  with  the  Drift  fauna  that  immi- 
grated from  Asia.  The  possibility  that 
man  also  got  from  North  Asia  to  North 
America  with  the  mammoth  during  the 
Drift  Period  can  no  longer  be  dismissed 


after  the  results  of  pala;ontological  re- 
search. It  explains  at  once  the  close  con- 
nection between  the  build  of  the  American 
and  the  great  Asiatic  (Mongolian)  races. 

Stone  implements  of  palaeolithic  form 
have  been  found  in  Drift  strata  in  North 
America,  and  the  same  applies  also,  as 
we  have  seen,  to  South  America.  The 
best  finds  there  were  those  made  by 
Ameghino  in  the  pampas  formation  of 
Argentina.  Here  marrow-bones,  split, 
worked,  and  burnt,  and  jaws  of  the  stag, 
glyptodon,  mastodon,  and  toxodon  have 
been   repeatedly   found   along   with    flint 


REMAINS    OF    A    STONE    AGE    MANSION 

These  remains  of  a  large  pile  hut  discovered  in  Germany 
show  that  Stone  Age  Man  had  made  good  progress  in 
building.     The  lower  diagram  shows  a  transverse  section. 

tools  of  palaeolithic  stamp  ;  and  Santiago 
Roth,  who  took  part  in  these  researches, 
supposes  that  fossil  man  in  South  America 
occasionally  used  the  coats  of  mail  of 
the  gigantic  armadillos  as  dwellings. 
But  the  civilisation  of  South  American 
man  is  doubtless  identical  with  that  of 
European  fossil  man — tools  and  weapons 
of  the  stone  types  familiar  in  Europe,  the 


THE  EARLIEST  EFFORTS  AT  BOAT-BUILDING 
The  dug-out  canoe,  hollowed  from  a  single  trunk,  was 
the  far-off  parent  of  the  ocean-going  ship.  The  upper 
picture  represents  a  prehistoric  canoe  found  in  Sussex 
and  the  lower  example  is  taken  from  a  German  specimen. 

working  of  bones,  the  use  of  fire  for  cooking, 
and  animal  food,  with  the  consequent 
special  fondness  for  fat  and  marrow. 


144 


THE  WORLD 

BEFORE 
HISTORY-IV 


Professor 

JOHANNES 

RANKE 


PRIMITIVE  MAN  IN  THE  PAST  &  THE  PRESENT 


TO  the  picture  of  Drift  Man  that  has  been 
drawn  for  us  by  the  discoveries  of 
human  activity  in  deposits  of  uniform 
character  and  sharply  defined  age,  the 
much  richer  but  far  less  reliable  finds  in 
the  bone  caves  add  scarcely  any  entirely 
new   touches.      Von  Zittel  says  : 

The  evidence  of  the  caves  is  unfortunately 
shaken  by  the  uncertainty  that,  as  a  rule, 
prevails  with  regard  to  the  manner  in  which 
their  contents  were  washed  into  them  or 
otherwise  introduced,  and  also  with  regard 
to  the  beginning  and  duration  of  their 
occupation  ;  moreover,  later  inhabitants 
have  frequently  mixed  up  their  relics  with 
the  heritage  of  previous  occupants. 

This  doubt  strikes  us  particularly  for- 
cibly as  regards  man's  co-existence  with 
the  extinct  animals  of  the  earlier  periods 
of  the  Drift,  the  Preglacial  and  Interglacial 
Periods.  On  the  other  hand,  the  habitation 
of  the  caves  by  man  during  the  Reindeer 
Period  appears  in  many  cases  to  be  per- 
fectly established,  and,  according  to  Von 
Zittel,  the  oldest  human  dwellings  in  caves, 
rock-niches,  and  river-plains  in  Europe 
belong  for  the  most  part  to 
the  Reindeer  Period — that  is, 
the  second  Glacial  and,  in  par- 
ticular, the  Postglacial  Period. 
In  the  caves  there  is  also  no  domestic 
animal,  and  no  pottery  or  trace  of  pot- 
sherds, in  the  best-defined  strata  where 
Drift  Man  has  been  found.  In  the 
Hohlefels  cave,  in  the  Ach  valley  in 
Swabia,  a  new  utensil  was  found  in  the 
form  of  a  cup  for  drinking  purposes  or  for 
drawing  water,  made  out  of  the  back  part 
of  a  reindeer's  skuU.  Also  a  new  tool  in  the 
form  of  a  fine  sewing-needle  with  eye,  from 
the  long  bone  of  a  swan,  such  as  have  also 
been  found  in  the  caves  of  the  Perigord. 
Teeth  of  the  wild  horse  and  lower  jaws 
of  the  wildcat,  which  are  found  in  the 
caves,  perforated  for  suspending  either 
as  ornaments  or  amulets,  are  also  hitherto 
unknown,  it  appears,  in  the  stratified  Drift. 
As  both  animals  are  at  a  later  period 
connected  with  the  deity  and  with  witch- 
craft, one  could  imagine  that  similar 
primitive  religious  ideas  existed  among  the 
old  cave-dwellers.     In  the  stratum  of  the 


First 
Dwellers  in 
Caves 


Reindeer  Period  at  the  Schweizerbild,  near 
Schaffhausen,  Niiesch  found  a  musical 
instrument,  "  a  reindeer  whistle,"  and 
shells  pierced  for  use  as  ornaments. 

The  finds  in  the  French  cave  districts 
prove  that  man  was  able  to  develop 
certain  higher  refinements  of  life,  even 
during  the  Drift  in  the  real  flint  districts-- 
,  where  a  very  suitable  material 
Drift  Man  s  ^^^  ^^  ^^^.^  disposal  in  the 
Working  ^.j^^  ^j^^^  j^y  ^^^^^  everywhere 
Materia  s  ^^  ^^^  easily  dug  up  ;  which 
was  worked  with  comparative  ease  into 
much  more  perfect  and  efficient  weapons 
and  implements  than  those  supplied  by 
the  wilder  stretches  of  moor  and  fen  of 
Germany,  with  their  scarcity  of  flint. 

If  we  compare  the  small,  often  tiny, 
knives  and  flint  flakes  from  the  German 
places  with  the  powerful  axes  and  lance- 
heads  of  those  regions,  it  is  self-evident 
how  much  more  laborious  life  must  have 
been  for  the  man  who  used  the  former.. 
What  labour  he  must  have  expended  in 
carving  weapons  and  implements  out  of 
bone  and  horn,  while  flint  supplied  the 
others  with  much  better  and  more  lasting 
ones  with  less  expenditure  of  time  and 
trouble  !  In  this  light  a  wealth  of  flint 
was  a  civilising  factor  of  that  period  which 
is  not  to  be  under-estimated.  In  the  flint 
districts  not  only  are  the  stone  implements 
better  worked,  answering  in  a  higher 
degree  the  purpose  of  the  weapon  and  the 
tool,  but  dehght  in  ornament  and  decora- 
tion is  also  more  prominent. 

Life  in  the  caves  and  grottos  and  under 

the   rock   shelters   in   the   neighbourhood 

of  rivers  was  by  no  means  quite  wretched. 

The    remains  left   in   the    caves 

The  Life    ^^    ^j^^-^      former     inhabitants 

P  '  *  give  almost  as  clear  an  idea 
*^**  of  the  life  of  man  in  those 
primeval  times  as  the  buried  cities  of 
Herculaneum  and  Pompeii  do  of  the 
manners  and  customs  of  the  Italians  in 
the  first  century  of  the  Christian  era. 
The  floors  of  these  caves  in  which  men 
formerly  lived  appear  to  consist  entirely 
of  broken  bones  of  animals  killed  in  the 
chase    intermixed  with  rude  implements 

145 


HISTORY    OF    THE     WORLD 


Drift 

Man  as 
Artist 


and  weapons  of  bone  and  unpolished 
stone,  and  also  charcoal  and  large  burnt 
stones,  indicating  the  position  of  fire- 
places. Flints  and  chips  without  number, 
rough  masses  of  stone,  awls,  lance-heads, 
hammers,  and  saws  of  flint  and  chert  lie 
in  motley  confusion  beside  bone  needles, 
carved  reindeer  antlers,  arrow-heads  and 
harpoons,  and  pointed  pieces 
of  horn  and  bone  ;  in  addition 
to  which  are  also  the  broken 
bones  of  the  animals  that  served 
as  food,  such  as  reindeer,  bison,  horse, 
ibex,  saiga  antelope,  and  musk-ox.  The 
reindeer  supplied  by  far  the  greater  part 
of  the  food,  and  must  at  that  time  have 
lived  in  Central  France  in  large  herds  and 
in  a  wild  state,  all  trace  of  the  dog  being 
absent. 

Among  these  abundant  remains  of 
culture  archaeologists  were  surprised  to 
find  real  objects  of  art  from  the  hand  of 
Drift  Man,  proving  that  thinking  about 
his  surroundings  had  developed  into  the 
ability  to  reproduce  what  he  saw  in 
drawing  and  modelling.  The  first  objects 
of  this  kind  were  found  in  the  caves  of  the 
Perigord.  They  are,  on  the  one  hand, 
drawings  scratched  on  stones,  reindeer 
bones,  or  pieces  of  horn,  mostly  very 
naive,  but  sometimes  really  lifelike, 
chiefly  representing  animals,  but  also 
men  ;  on  the  other  hand  imitations  plasti- 
cally carved  out  of  pieces  of  reindeer  horn, 
bones,  or  teeth.  Such  engravings  also 
occurred  on  pieces  of  ivory,  and  plastic 
representations  in  this  material  have  been 
preserved.  On  a  cylindrical  piece  of 
reindeer  horn  from  the  cave  excavations 
in  the  Dordogne  is  the  representation  of  a 
fish,  and  on  the  shovel-piece  of  a  rein- 
deer's horn  are  the  head  and  breast  of  an 
animal  resembling  the  ibex.  Illustrations  of 
horses  give  faithful  reproductions  of  the 
flowing  mane,  unkempt  tail,  and  dispro- 
portionately large  head  of  the  large- 
headed  wild  horse  of  the  Drift.  The 
most  important  among  these 
ic  urcs  representations  are  such  as 
from  the  ',  ,  J 

r»   c^  \xr    ..endeavour     to    reproduce     an 
Drift  World  ,.    ,      .      ,  i.  a  n 

historical  event.  An  illus- 
tration of  this  kind  represents  a  group 
consisting  of  two  horses'  heads  and  an 
apparently  naked  male  figure  ;  the  latter 
bears  a  long  staff  or  spear  in  his  right 
hand,  and  stands  beside  a  tree,  which  is 
bent  down  almost  in  coils  in  order  to  ac- 
commodate itself  to  the  limited  space,  and 
whose  boughs,  indicated  by  parallel  lines, 

146 


show  it  to  be  a  pine  or  fir.  Connected 
with  the  tree  is  a  system  of  vertical  and 
horizontal  lines,  apparently  representing 
a  kind  of  hurdlework.  On  the  other  side 
of  the  same  cylindrical  piece  are  two 
bisons'  heads.  Doubtless  this  picture  tells 
a  tale  ;  it  is  picture-writing  in  exactly 
the  same  sense  as  that  of  the  North 
American  Indians.  Our  picture  already 
shows  the  transition  to  abbreviated 
picture-writing,  as,  instead  of  the  whole 
animals — horses  and  bisons — only  the 
heads  are  given.  The  message-sticks  of 
the  Australians  bear  certain  resemblances  ; 
Bastian  has  rightly  described  them  as  the 
beginnings  of  writing. 

If  we  have  interpreted  them  aright,  the 
finds  that  have  been  made,  with  the 
tally  from  the  source  of  the  Schussen 
and  the  message-stick  from  the  caves  of 
the  Dordogne,  place  the  art  of  counting, 
the  beginnings  of  writing,  the  first  artistic 
impulses,  and  other  elements  of  primitive 
culture  right  back  in  the  Drift  period. 

"  None  of  the  animals  whose  remains 
lie  in  the  Drift  strata,"  says  Oscar  Fraas, 
"  were   tamed   for   the   service  of   man." 


The  Emcrg- 


On  the  contrary,    man   stood 
in    hostile    relation  to  all  of 
u^  °    XM-  J  them,  and  only  knew  how  to 

Human  Mind  ,    ,,    /,  •        -^  ,       , 

kill  them,  in  order  to  support 
himself  with  their  flesh  and  blood  and  the 
marrow  of  their  bones.  It  was  not  so 
much  his  physical  strength  which  helped 
man  in  his  fight  for  existence,  for  with 
few  exceptions  the  animals  he  killed  were 
infinitely  superior  to  him  in  strength  ; 
indeed  it  is  not  easy,  even  with  the  help 
of  powder  and  lead,  to  kill  the  elephant, 
rhinoceros,  grizzly  bear,  and  bison,  or  to 
hunt  down  the  swift  horse  and  reindeer. 
It  was  a  question  of  finding  out,  with  his 
mental  superiority,  the  beast's  unguarded 
moments,  and  of  surprising  it  or  bringing 
it  down  in  pits  and  snares.  All  the  more 
wonderful  does  the  savage  of  the  European 
Drift  Period  appear  to  us,  "for  we  see 
that  he  belongs  to  the  first  who  exercised 
the  human  mind  in  the  hard  battle  of  life, 
and  thereby  laid  the  foundation  of  all 
later  developments  in  the  sense  of  progress 
in  culture."  And  yet,  in  the  midst  of 
this  poor  life,  a  sense  of  the  little  pleasures 
and  refinements  of  existence  already  began 
to  develop,  as  proved  by  the  elegantly 
carved  and  decorated  weapons  and  imple- 
ments, and  there  were  even  growing  a  sense 
of  the  beauty  of  Nature  and  the  power  of 
copying  it.  The  bone  needles  with  eyes  and 


PRIMITIVE    NATURE    FOLK    ENGAGED     IN     FISHING 
From  the  painting  by  Ferdinand  Cormon. 


the  fine  awls  are  evidences  of  the  art  of  sew- 
ing, and  the  numerous  scrapers  of  flint  and 
bone  teach  us  that  Drift  Man  knew  how 
to  dress  skins  for  clothing  purposes,  and 
did  it  according  to  the  method  still  used 
among  the  Esquimaux  and  most  northern 
Indians  at  the  present  day.  Spinning 
does  not  seem  to  have  been  known.  On 
the  other  hand  Drift  Man  knew  how  to 
twist  cords,  impressions  and  indentations 
of  which  are  conspicuous  on  the  bone  and 
horn  implements  ;  on  which  also  thread- 
marks    were    imitated    as    a    primitive 


ornament.  Pottery  was  unknown  to 
Drift  Man.  Indeed,  even  to-day  the 
production  of  pottery  is  not  a  commonly 
felt  want  of  mankind.  The  leather  bottle, 
made  of  the  skin  of  some  small  animal 
stripped  off  whole  without  a  seam,  turned 
inside  out  as  it  were,  takes  the  place  of 
the  majority  of  the  larger  vessels  ;  on  the 
other  hand,  liquids  can  also  be  kept  for 
some  time  in  a  tightly-made  wicker  basket. 
The  art  of  plaiting  was  known  to  Drift 
Man.  This  is  shown  by  the  ornaments  on 
weapons   and    implements,   the    plaiting- 

147 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORlD 


needle  from  the  find  at  the  source  of  the 
Schussen,  and  the  hurdlework  represented 
on  the  message-stick  mentioned  above, 
which  may  be  either  a  hurdle  made  of 
boughs  and  branches  or  a  summer  dwell- 
ing house.  To  these  acquirements,  based 
chiefly  on  an  acquaintance  with  serviceable 
weapons  and  implements,  is  added  the 
art  of  representing  natural  objects  by 
drawing  and  carving.  This  results  in  the 
attempt  to  retain  historical  momenta  in 
the  form  of  abridged  illustrations  for  the 
purpose  of  communicating  them  to  others 
— incipient    picture-writing.        The  tally 


shows  the  method  of  representing  numbers 
— generally  only  one  stroke  each,  but  also 
two  strokes  connected  by  a  line  to  form 
a  higher  unit.  Of  the  art  of  building  not 
a  trace  is  left  to  us  apart  from  the  laying 
together  of  rough  stones  for  fireplaces  ; 
nor  have  tombs  of  that  period  of  ancient 
times  been  discovered. 

The  civihsation  of  Drift  Man  and  his 
whole  manner  of  life  do  not  confront  the 
present  human  race  as  something  strange, 
but  fit  perfectly  into  the  picture  exhibited 
by  mankind  at  the  present  day.  Drift 
Man  nowhere  steps  out  of  this  frame.    If 


:?^r 


Mercier 

EARLY    AGRICULTURISTS,    WITH     IMPLEMENTS    OF    BONE,    STONE,    AND    BRONZE 
From  the  painting  by  Ferdinand  Cormon. 


148 


AN    EMIGRATION     OF    THE    GAULS    IN    THE    BRONZE 
From  the  painting  by  Ferdinand  Cormon. 


AGE 


a  European  traveller  were  nowadays  to 
come  upon  a  body  of  Drift  men  on  the 
borders  of  eternal  ice,  towards  the  north 
or  south  pole  of  our  globe,  nothing  would 
appear  extraordinary  and  without  analogy 
to  him  ;  indeed  it  would  be  possible  for  him 
to  come  to  an  understanding  with  them  by 
means  of  picture-writing,  and  to  do  busi- 
ness with  them  by  means  of  the  tally. 

The  manner  of  life  led  by  man  beyond 
the  borders  of  higher  civilisation,  especi- 
ally under  extreme  climatic  conditions, 
depends  almost  exclusively  on  his  out- 
ward   surroundings    and    the    possibility 


of  obtaining  food.  The  Esquimaux,  who, 
like  Drift  Man  of  Central  Europe  in  former 
times,  live  on  the  borders  of  eternal  ice 
with  the  Drift  animals  that  emigrated 
thither, — the  reindeer,  musk-ox,  bear, 
Arctic  fox,  etc. — are  restricted,  like  him, 
to  hunting  and  fishing,  and  to  a  diet 
consisting  almost  entirely  of  flesh  and 
fat  ;  corn-growing  and  the  keeping  of 
herds  of  domestic  animals  being  self- 
prohibitive.  Their  kitchen  refuse  exactly 
resembles  that  from  the  Drift.  Before 
their  acquaintance  with  the  civilisation 
of  modern  Europe  they  used  stone   and 

149 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


bone  besides  driftwood  for  making  their 
weapons  and  implements,  as  they  still  do 
to  a  certain  extent  at  the  present  day, 
either  from  preference  or  from  super- 
stitious ideas.  Their  binding  material 
consisted  of  threads  twisted  from  reindeer 
sinews,  with  which  they  sewed  their 
clothes  and  fastened  their  harpoons  and 
arrows,  the  latter  resembling  in  form  those 
of  Drift  Man.  They  knew  no  more  than 
he  the  arts  of  spinning  and  weaving,  their 
clothes  being  made  from  the  skins  of  the 
animals  they  hunted ;  pots  were  unknown 
and  unnecessary  to 
them. 

It  has  often  been 
thought  that  we 
should  have  a  definite 
criterion  of  the  period 
if  it  could  be  proved 
that  fresh  mammoth 
ivory  was  employed 
at  the  particular  time 
for  making  imple- 
ments and  weapons, 
or  ornaments,  carv- 
ings, and  drawings. 
There  can  be  no 
doubt  that  when 
Drift  Man  succeeded 
in  killing  a  mammoth 
he  used  the  tusks  for 
his  purposes.  But  on 
the  borders  of  eter- 
nal ice,  where  alone 
we  could  now  expect 
to  find  a  frozen  Drift 
Man,  no  conclusion 
could  be  drawn  from 
objects  of  mammoth 
ivory  being  in  the 
jwssession  of  a  corpse 
to  determine  the 
great  age  of  the 
latter.  For  the  many 
mammoth  tusks 
which    have    been  found 


PRIMITIVE    ART    OF    OUR    OWN     DAY 

The  picture-writing  of  the  American  Indians  in  our  own 
day  offers  an  interesting  parallel  to  that  of  the  primitive 
peoples  of  the  remotest  past.  The  Pawnees  decorate  their 
buffalo  robes  with  such  drawings  as  these,  representing 
a  procession  of  medicine  men,  the  foremost  giving  freedom 
to  his  favourite  horse  as  a  sacrifice  to  the  Great  Spirit. 


and  used  from 
time  immemorial  in  North  Siberia,  on  the 
New  Siberian  Islands,  and  in  other  places, 
are  absolutely  fresh,  and  are  even  employed 
in  the  arts  of  civilised  countries  in  exactly 
the  same  way  as  fresh  ivory.  Under  the 
name  of  "  mammoth  ivory  "  the  fossil  tusks 
dug  up  by  ivory-seekers,  or  mammoth- 
hunters,  form  an  important  article  of  com- 
merce. 

The  same  conditions  as  many  parts  of 
Northern  Siberia  still  exhibit  at  the  {)resent 
day  prevailed  over  the  whole    of    Central 

150 


Europe  at  the  end  of  the  Glacial  Period  and 
the  beginning  of  the  Postglacial  Period. 
Here  man  lived  on  frozen  ground  on  the 
borders  of  ice-fields  with  the  reindeer  and 
its  companions,  as  he  does  to-day  in 
Northern  Asia,  and  here,  too — as  he  does 
there  to-day — he  must  have  found  the 
woolly-haired  mammoth  preserved  by  the 
cold  in  the  ice  and  frozen  ground.  The 
Drift  reindeer-men  of  Central  Europe  pre- 
sumably searched  for  mammoth  tusks  just 
as  much  as  the  present  reindeer-men  in 
North  Asia.  The  great  field  of  mammoth 
carrion  at  Predmost 
was,  therefore,  a  very 
powerful  attraction, 
not  only  for  the  beasts 
of  prey — chief  among 
them  wolves  —  but 
also  for  man. 

In  France  especially 
many  primitive  works 
of  art  of  the  "  Ivory 
Epoch "  have  been 
found,  and  even  the 
nude  figure  of  woman 
is  not  wanting  ;  but 
no  proof  is  given  that 
these  carvings  belong 
to  the  time  when  the 
mammoth  still  lived. 
Much  sensation  has 
been  caused  by  an 
engraving  on  a  piece 
of  mammoth  ivory 
representing  a  hairy 
mammoth  with  its 
mane  and  strongly- 
curved  tusks.  This 
illustration  has  been 
taken  as  unexception- 
able proof  that  the 
artist  of  the  Drift 
Period  who  did  it  saw 
and  portrayed  the 
mammoth  alive.  But 
could  the  mammoth  hunter  Schumachow 
— the  Tunguse  who,  in  1709,  discovered,  in 
the  ice  of  the  peninsula  of  Tumys  Bykow  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Lena,  the  mammoth  now 
erected  in  the  collection  at  the  St.  Peters- 
burg Academy  [see  page  123] — have 
pictured  the  animal  otherwise  when 
it  was  freshly  melted  out  of  the  ice  ? 
And  the  Madelaine  cave  in  the  Peri- 
gord,  where  the  piece  of  ivory  with 
the  picture  of  the  mammoth  was  found, 
certainly  belongs  to  the  Reindeer  Period. 
Had    we    not    independent   proofs    that 


THE    EARLIEST    ART:    MANKIND'S    FIRST    EFFORTS    IN     PICTURE-MAKING 

These  illustrations  are  of  engravings  on  stone  and  bone  and  scratchings  on  rocks  made  by  prehistoric  man, 
chiefly  in  France.  The  figures  of  the  reindeer  and  those  of  the  mammoth  and  the  bison,  the  two  latter  found  at 
Dordogne,  are  astonishingly  good,  and  indicate  genuine  power  of  draughtsmanship  at  a  remote  period  of  human  life. 


151 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Drift  Man  lived  in  Central  Europe — for 
instance,  at  Taubach  —  with  the  great 
extinct  pachydermata,  neither  the  finds 
in  the  "loess"  near  Predmost,  nor  the 
articles  of  ivory,  nor  the  illustration  of  the 
mammoth   itself,  could   prove  it.      They 

furnish  absolute  proof  of  the 
c*^  *d  th  6-^'stence  of  Drift  Man  only 
omparc  wi  \j^^]^  ^q  ^j^g  Reindeer  Period. 
Modern  Man       ^^       i      •  i  ■,     ,^ 

io  decide  whether  a  corpse 

frozen  in  the  stone-ice  belonged  to  a 
Drift  Man,  the  examination  of  the  corpse 
itself,  its  skull,  bones,  and  soft  parts, 
would  no  more  suffice  than  clothing, 
implements,  and  ornament.  For  at  least 
so  much  is  con- 
fidently asserted 
by  many  palaeonto- 
logists, that  all  the 
skulls  and  bones 
hitherto  known  to 
have  been  ascribed 
to  Drift  Man  by 
the  most  eminent 
paleontologists, 
geologists,  and 
anthropologists, 
cannot  be  dis- 
tinguished from 
those  of  men  of  the 
l)resent  day.  Von 
Zittel,  the  foremost 
scholar  in  the  field 
of  palaeontology  in 
Germany,   says  : 

The  only  remains 
of  Drift  Man  of  re- 
liable age  are  a  skull 
from  Olmo,  near 
Chiana,  in  Tuscany  ; 
a  skull  from  Egis- 
heim,  in  Alsace:  a 
lower  jaw  from  the 
Naulette  cave  near 
I'urfooz,  in  Belgium  ;  and  a  fragment  of 
jaw  from  the  Schipka  cave  in  Moravia.  This 
material  is  not  sufficient  for  determining  race, 
but  all  human  remains  of  reliable  age  from 
the  drift  of  Europe,  and  all  the  skulls  found 
in  caves,  agree  in  size,  form,  and  capacity 
with  Homo  sapiens,  and  are  well  formed 
throughout.  In  no  way  do  they  fill  the  gap 
between  man  and  ape. 

"  On  the  other  hand,"  writes  Dr. 
Chalmers  Mitchell,  "  a  large  majority  of 
modern  anatomists  and  palaeontologists 
accept  the  antiquity  of  such  skulls  as 
the  Neanderthal  specimen,  and  agree 
that  these  pomt  to  the  existence  of  a 
liuman  race  inferior  to  any  now  existing. 
This  race  comprised  powerfully-built  indi- 

152 


PRIMITIVE    PEOPLE    OF    TO-DAY 

Until  they  came  in  touch  with  European  travellers  the 
Esquimaux  were  in  precisely  the  same  condition  as  Drift  Man  : 
they  were  living  in  the  Ice  Age.  They  are  but  little  more 
advanced  now,  and  the  difference  between  them  and  prehistoric 
men  is  slight.      This  is  a  group  of  young   Esquimau    women. 


viduals,  with  low  foreheads,  prominent, 
bony  ridges  above  the  eyes,  and  retreating 
chins.  The  radius  and  ulna  were  unusually 
divergent,  so  that  the  forearms  must  have 
been  heavy  and  clumsy.  The  thigh-bones 
were  bent  and  the  shin-bones  short,  so 
that  the  race  must  have  been  bow-legged 
and  clumsy  in  gait. 

"  The  intermediate  position  of  the.se 
primitive  types  has  received  extraordinary 
confirmation  by  the  discovery  of  what 
may  truly  be  called  the  link,  no  longer 
missing,  between  man  and  the  apes.  In 
1894,  Dr.  Eugene  Dubois  discovered  in  the 
Island  of  Java  in  a  bed  of  volcanic  ashes 
containing  the  re- 
mains of  Pliocene 
animals  the  roof  of 
a  small  skull,  two 
grinding-teeth,  and 
a  diseased  femur. 
These  remains  in- 
dicate an  animal 
which,  when  erect, 
stood  not  less  than 
5  ft.  6  in.  high. 
The  teeth  and 
thigh-bones  were 
very  human,  and 
the  skull,  although 
very  human,  had 
prominent  eyebrow 
ridges  like  those 
of  theNennderthal 
type,  and  a  capa- 
city of  about  1,000 
cubic  centimetres 
— that  is  to  say, 
much  greater  than 
that  of  the  largest 
living  apes,  and 
falling  short  by 
about  100  cubic 
centimetres  of  the  largest  skull  capacities 
of  existing  normal  human  beings.  This 
creature,  regarded  at  first  by  some 
anatomists  as  a  degenerate  man,  by 
others  as  a  high  ape,  has  now  been 
definitely  accepted  as  a  new  type  of  being, 
.  -,  intermediate    between    man 

D  .  ^^^  m<  and  the  apes  and  designated 
Between  Man  tim;  .;       j.  -       >> 

.  .      y  as  Ftthecanthropus   erectus. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  Asia, 

Europe,  North  Africa,  and  North  America, 

so  far  as  their  ice-covering  allowed  of  their 

being    inhabited,    form    one    continuous 

region  for  the  distribution  of  Paleolithic 

Man,  in  which  all  discoveries  give  similar 

results.     In  this  vast   region  the  lowest 


THE 


OF     PRIMITIVE    PEOPLE 


DAY 


IMC    HOMES    wi      XXX.. -  ,      <■  c       ■  4. 

There  are  people  still  living  in  dwelling-places  of  prehistoric  type.      This  photograph  of  Esquimau  stone 
Ind  turf  huts,  mGreenllnd!^  shows  exactly  the  kind  of  dwellings  used   by  prehistoric  men  m  the  Ice  Age. 


—  THE    GRADUAL    EXTINCTION     OF    PRIMITIVE     PEOPLES 

?mmmmmsmmsmm 

153 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


and  oldest  prehistoric  stratum  that  serves 
as  the  basis  of  historical  civilisation  is  the 
homogeneous  PaL-eoIithic  stratum.  In  the 
Drift  Period,  Palaeolithic  Man  penetrated 
into  South  America,  as  into  a  new  region, 
with  northern  Drift  animals.  In  Central 
and  South  Africa  and  Australia,  Palaeo- 
lithic Man  does  not  yet  seem  to  be  known. 
All  the  more  important  is  it  that  in  Tas- 
mania Palaeolithic  conditions  of  civilisation 
existed  until  the 
middle  of  the  last 
century. 

The  palaeontology 
of  man  has  hitherto 
obtained  good  geo- 
logical information  of 
the  oldest  Palaeolithic 
culture-stratum  of 
the  Drift  in  only  a 
few  parts  of  the  earth, 
and  only  in  Tasmania 
does  this  oldest  stra- 
tum appear  to  have 
cropped  out  free,  and 
still  uncovered  by 
other  culture  strata, 
down  to  our  own  times.  Otherwise 
it  is  everywhere  overlaid  by  a  second, 
later  culture-stratum  of  much  greater 
thickness,  which,  although  opened  up 
in  almost  innumerable  places,  is  not 
spread  over  the  whole  earth  as  is  the 
Palaeolithic  stratum.  As  oppo- 
sed to  the  earliest  Stone  Age 
of  the  Drift,  which  we  have 
come  to  know  as  the  Palaeolithic 
Period,  this  has  been  called  the  Later 
Stone  Age  or  Neolithic  Period. 

The  Neolithic  Period  is  also  ignorant  of 
the  working  of  metals  ;  for  weapons  and 
implements,  stone  is  the  exclusive  hard 
material  of  which  the  blades  are  made. 
But  geologically  and  palaeontologically  the 
two  culture-strata  are  widely  and  sharply 
separated. 

As  regards  Europe,  and  a  large  part  of 
the  other  continents,  the  second  stratum 
of  the  culture  of  the  human  race  still  lies 
at  prehistoric  depth.  But  in  other  exten- 
sive parts  of  the  earth  the  stratum  of 
Neolithic  culture  was  not  covered  by  other 
culture-strata  until  far  into  the  period  of 
written  history.  Even  a  large  part  of 
Europe  was  still  inhabited  by  history-less 
tribes  of  the  later  Stone  Age  at  the  time 
when  the  old  civilised  lands  of  Asia  and  of 
Africa,  and  the  coasts  of  the  Mediter- 
ranean, had  everywhere — on  the  basis  of 

154 


A  CREATURE  BETWEEN  APE  AND  MAN 
The  skull  of  the  Fossil  Ape-man  found  in  1894,  ir 
the  island    of  Java ;   restored   by  Dr.    Eugene   Dubois. 


Backward 
Races  of 
Europe 


the  same  Neolithic  elements,  with  the 
increasing  use  of  metals — already  risen  to 
that  higher  stage  of  civilisation  which, 
with  the  historical  written  records  of 
Egypt  and  Babylonia,  forms  the  basis  of 
our  present  chronology. 

When  these  civilised  nations  came  into 
direct  contact  with  the  more  remote 
nations  of  the  Old  World,  they  found  them, 
as  we  have  said,  still,  to  a  certain  extent, 
at  the  Neolithic  stage 
of  civilisation,  just 
as,  when  Europeans 
settled  in  America, 
the  great  majority  of 
the  aborigines  had 
not  yet  passed  the 
Neolithic  stage,  at 
which,  indeed,  the 
lowest'  primitive 
tribes  of  Central 
Brazil  still  remain. 
Australia,  and  a  large 
part  of  the  island 
world  of  the  South 
Sea,  had  not  yet 
risen  above  the  Neo- 
lithic stage  (Tasmania,  probably,  not 
even  above  the  Palaeolithic)  when  they 
were  discovered.  There  the  Stone  Age, 
to  a  certain  extent,  comes  down  to  modern 
times  ;  likewise  in  the  far  north  of  Asia, 
in  Greenland,  in  the  most  northern  parts 
of  America,  and  at  the  south  point  of  the 
New  Continent  among  the  Fuegians. 

The  men  of  the  later  Stone  Age  are  the 
ancestors  of  the  civilised  men  of  to-day. 
Classical  antiquity  among  Greeks  and 
Romans  had  still  a  consciousness  of  this, 
at  least  partly  ;  it  was  not  entirely  for- 
gotten that  the  oldest  weapons  of  men 
did  not  consist  of  metal,  but  of  stone,  and 
even  inferior  material.  The  worked  stones 
which  the  people  then,  as  now,  designated 
as  weapons  of  the  deity,  as  lightning- 
stones  or  thunderbolts,  were  recognised  by 
keener-sighted  men  as  weapons  of  primeval 
inhabitants  of  the  land. 

The  "  kitchen  middens  "  on  the  Danish 
coasts  mark  places  of  more  or  less  permanent 
y..        .  settlement,    consisting   of 

J,..  .  more  or  less  numerous  in- 

nlddcns  Tell  Us  (dividual  dwellings.  From 
these  middens  a  rich  in- 
ventory of  finds 'has  been  made,  afford- 
ing a  glimpse  of  the  life  and  doings  of 
those  ancient  times.  The  heaps  consist 
principally  of  thousands  upon  thousands 
of  opened  shells  of  oysters,  cockles,  and 


PRIMITIVE    MAN    IN    THE    PAST    AND    THE    PRESENT 


other  shellfish  still  eaten  at  the  present 
day,  mingled  with  the  bones  of  the  roe, 
stag,  aurochs,  wild  boar,  beaver,  seal,  etc. 
Bones  of  fishes  and  birds  were  also 
made  out,  among  the  latter  being  the 
bones  of  the  wild  swan  and  of  the  now 
extinct  great  auk,  and,  what  is  specially 
important  in  determining  the  geological 
age  of  these  remains,  large  numbers  of 
the  bones  of  the  capercailzie.  Domestic 
animals  are  absent  with  the  exception 
of  the  dog,  whose  bones,  however,  are 
broken,  burnt,  gnawed  in  the  same  way 
as  those  of  the  beasts  of  the  chase. 
Everything  proves  that  on  the  sites  of 
these  middens  there  formerly  lived  a  race 
of  fishers  and  hunters,  whose  chief  food 
consisted  of  shellfish,  the  shells  of  which 
accumulated  in  mounds  around  their 
dwellings.  Proofs  of  agriculture  and 
cattle-rearing  there  are  none  ;  the  dog  alone 
was  frequently  bred  not  only  as  a  com- 
panion in  the  chase,  but  also  for  its  flesh. 


The  state  of  civilisation  of  the  old  Danish 
shellfish-eaters  was  not  quite  a  low  one 
in  spite  of  its  primitive  colouring,  and  in 
essential  points  was  superior  to  that  of 
Palaeolithic  Man.  Not  only  had  they 
tamed  a  really  domestic  animal,  the  dog, 
but  they  made  and  used  clay  vessels 
for  cooking  and  storing  purposes.  The 
cooking  was  done  on  fireplaces.  They 
could  work  deer-horn  and  bone  well. 
Of  the  former  hammer-axes  with  round 
holes  were  made,  and  of  animal  bones 
arrow-heads,  awls,  and  needles,  with 
the  points  carefully  smoothed.  Small 
bone  combs  appeared  to  have  served 
not  so  much  for  toilet  purposes  as 
for  dividing  animal  sinews  for  making 
threads,  or  for  dressing  the  threads  in 
weaving. 

In  the  way  of  ornaments  there  were 
perforated  animal  teeth.  The  fish  re- 
mains found  in  the  middens  belong  to  the 
plaice,  cod,  herring,  and  eel.  To  catch  these 


-^     .f  S-j^^r^  NORTH      l^^;^'   (STOCKH^         '^'lif^  '^' 

CD  ^<  ^3ig"*™      /  hC"^^^^  '^     A      JTJ        Y 

Scdiyls., >-t:— t^y,_A,  ^V^^^^-Ji'^  BrunswKS,   ^„^ 


EUROPE     IN    THE    ICE    AGE 

The  map  illustrates  the  extent  of  the  Ice  Age  in  Europe.  It  will  be  noticed  that  in  England  the  ice-cap  did  not 
extend  south  of  the  position  of  London  though  it  occurred  much  further  south  in  the  mountain  regions  of  the  Pyrenees, 
the  Alps,  Tyrol,  the  Carpathians  and  the  Caucasus.     The  dark  portions  of  the  map  represent  the  extent  of  the  ice 


HISTORY    OF    THE     WORLD 


Drift  Man 
and  His 
Adversaries 


deep-sea  fish  the  fishermen  must  have  gone 
out  to  sea,  which  imphes  the  possession  of 
boats  of  some  kind.  Nor  was  only  small 
game  hunted,  but  also  large  game.  Ninety 
per  cent,  of  the  animal  bones  occurring 
in  the  shell-mounds  consist  of  those  of 
large  animals,  especially  the  deer,  roe,  and 
wild  boar.  Even  such  dangerous  adver- 
saries as  the  aurochs,  bear, 
wolf,  and  lynx  were  killed, 
likewise  the  beaver,  wildcat, 
seal,  otter,  marten,  and  fox. 
The  very  numerous  fragments  of  clay 
vessels  belong  partly  to  large  pot-like 
vessels  without  handles  and  with  pointed 
or  flat  bottoms,  and  partly  to  small  oval 
bowls  with  round  bottoms.  All  vessels 
were  made  with  the  free  hand  of  coarse 
clay,  into  which  small  fragments  of 
granitic  stone  were  kneaded  ;  as  ornament 
they  have  in  a  few  cases  incisions  or 
im{;)ressions,  mostly  made  with  the  finger 
itself  on  the  upper  edge. 

The  great  importance  of  the  Danish 
middens  in  the  general  history  of  mankind 
is  due  to  the  fact  that  their  age  is  geologi- 
cally established,  so  that  they  can  serve 
as  a  starting-point  for  chronology.  It  is 
to  Japetus  Steenstrup  that  the  early 
history  of  our  race  owes  this  chronological 
fixing  of  an  initial  date. 

The  earliest  inhabitants  of  the  North  of 
Europe  during  the  Stone  Age,  as  recorded 
by  these  kitchen-middens  of  the  Danish 
jieriod,  were  scarcely  superior  to  Palaeo- 
lithic Man  in  civilisation,  judging  from 
outward  appearances.  But  a  closer  investi- 
gation taught  us  that,  in  spite  of  the 
poverty  of  their  remains,  a  higher  develop- 
ment of  civilisation  is  unmistakable.  And 
this  superiority  of  the  Neolithic  over  the 
PaLneolithic  Epoch  becomes  far  more 
evident  if  we  take  as  our  standard  of  com- 
parison, not  the  poor  fisher  population,  who 
probably  first  reached  the  Danish  shores 
as  pioneers,  but  the  Neolithic  civilisation 
that  had  been  fully  developed  in  sunnier 

^^     ^.    ^     lands  and  followed  closely  upon 
The   First       ,i  ^  "^  , ,' 

„,         .     ,  these     trappers    or    squatters. 
Elements  of  ^^      j.    ^      i        i-  ^     r   ^  ■ 

„.  ...    ,.      Next  to  huntmg   and    fishmg, 

Civilisation        ,,1     ,  11  1. 

cattle-breedmg  and  agriculture 
are  noticeable  as  the  first  elements  of  Neo- 
lithic civilisation,  and  in  connection  with 
them  the  preparation  of  flour  and  cooking  ; 
and  as  technical  arts,  chiefly  carving  and 
the  fine  working  of  stone,  of  which  wea- 
pons and  the  most  various  kinds  of  tools 
were  made  ;  with  the  latter  wood,  bone, 
deer-horn,  etc.,  could   be  worked.      The 

156 


blades  are  no  longer  sharpened  merely  by 
chipping,  but  by  grinding,  and  are  made  in 
various  technically  perfect  forms.  Special 
importance  was  attached  to  providing 
them  with  suitable  handles,  for  fixing  which 
the  stone  implement  or  weapon  was  either 
provided  with  a  hole,  or,  as  in  America 
especially,  with  notches  or  grooves. 

In  addition  to  these,  there  are  the  primi- 
tive arts  of  man — the  ceramic  art,  spinning, 
and  weaving.  In  the  former,  especially, 
an  appreciation  of  artistic  form  and  decora- 
tion by  ornament  is  developed.  The  orna- 
ment becomes  a  kind  of  symbolical 
written  language,  the  eventual  deciphering 
of  which  appears  possible  in  view  of  the 
latest  discoveries  concerning  the  orna- 
mental symbolism  of  the  primitive  races 
of  the  present  day.  Discoveries  of  dwell- 
ings prove  an  advanced  knowledge  of 
primitive  architecture  ;  entrenchments  and 
tumuli  acquaint  us  with  the  principles 
of  their  earthworks  ;  and  the  giant 
chambers,  built  of  colossal  blocks  of  stone 
piled  upon  one  another,  prove  that  the 
builders  of  those  times  were  not  far  behind 
the   much-admired   Egyptian   builders   in 

^^  .,  ,  transporting  and  piling  masses 
The  Mental         r     ,  '?r,     1        •    1  1 

. .  of  stone.     Ihe  burials,  whose 

.*  .  ^  _  ceremonies  are  revealed  by 
opened  graves,  afford  a  glimpse 
of  the  mental  life  of  that  period.  From 
the  skulls  and  skeletons  that  have  been 
taken  from  the  Neolithic  graves,  science 
has  been  able  to  reconstruct  the  physical 
frame  of  Neolithic  Man,  which  has  in  no 
way  to  fear  comparison  with  that  of 
modern  man.  Of  the  ornaments  of  the 
Stone  Age  the  most  important  and  charac- 
teristic are  perforated  teeth  of  dogs, 
wolves,  horses,  oxen,  bears,  boars,  and 
smaller  beasts  of  prey.  How  much  in 
favour  such  ornaments  were  is  proved  by 
the  fact  that  even  imitations  or  counter- 
feits of  them  were  worn.  Numerous  articles 
of  ornament,  carved  from  bone  and  deer- 
horn,  were  universal  :  ornamental  plates 
and  spherical,  basket  -  shaj)ed,  square, 
shuttle-like,  or  chisel-shaped  beads  were 
made  of  these  materials  and  formed  into 
chains. 

In  the  Swiss  lake-dwellings  of  the  Stone 
Age  have  been  found  skilfully  carved 
ear-drojxs,  needles  with  eyes,  neat  little 
combs  of  boxwood,  and  hairpins,  some 
with  heads  and  others  with  ])ierced  side 
protuberances.  Remains  of  textile  fabrics, 
even  finely  twilled  tissue,  and  also  leather, 
were  yielded  by  the  excavations  of  the 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


lake-dwellings  of  that  period,  so  that  we 
have  to  imagine  the  inhabitants  adorned 
with  clothes  of  various  kinds. 

What  raises  man  of  the  later  Stone  Age 
so  far  above  Palaeolithic  Man  is  the 
posression  of  domestic  animals  and  the 
knowledge  of  agriculture.  As  domestic 
animals  of  the  later  Stone  Age  we  have 
,   _  proof  of  the  dog,  cow,  horse, 

^/^ .  ,  " .  .  Among  the  animals  that 
Animal  Friend  ,  ^^      i     j   .i_  i  ^ 

have  attached  themselves  to 

man  as  domestic,  the  first  and  oldest  is 
undoubtedly  the  dog.  It  is  found  dis- 
tributed over  the  whole  earth,  being  absent 
from  only  a  few  small  islands.  Among 
many  races  the  dog  was,  and  is  still,  the 
i  nly  domestic  animal  in  the  proper  sense 
of  the  word.  This  applies  to  all  Esquimau 
tribes,  to  the  majority  of  the  Indians  of 
North  and  South  America,  and  to  the 
continent  of  Australia. 

We  have  no  certain  proofs  that  Palaeo- 
lithic Man  possessed  the  dog  as  a  domestic 
animal.  In  the  Somme  valley,  at  Tau- 
bach,  and  at  the  source  of  the  Schussen, 
bones  of  the  domestic  dog  are  absent. 
And  yet,  among  Drift  fauna  in  caves 
remains  of  dogs  have  been  repeatedly 
met  with,  which  have  been  claimed  to  be 
the  direct  ancestors  of  the  domestic  dog. 
The  dog's  attachment  to  man  may  have 
taken  place  at  different  times  in  different 
parts.  Man  and  dog  immigrate  to  South 
America  with  the  foreign  Northern  fauna 
simultaneously — in  a  geological  sense — 
during  the  Drift.  In  Australia,  man  and 
dog  (dingo),  as  the  most  intimate  animal 
beings,  are  opposed  to  an  animal  world 
that  is  otherwise  anomalous  and,  to  the 
Old  World,  quite  antiquated  ;  probably 
man  and  dog  also  came  to  Australia 
together.  We  know  of  fossil  remains  of 
the  dingo  from  the  Drift,  but  no  reliable 
finds  have  yet  proved  the  presence  of 
man  during  that  period. 

In  the  later  Stone  Age  the  dog  already 

occurs  as  the  companion  of  man  wherever 

_.     _  it    occurs   in     historic     times. 

The  Dog 

in  the 


Stone  Age 


In   Europe    its   remains    have 
been     found     in    the     Danish 


kitchen-middens,  in  the  nor- 
thern Neolithic  finds,  in  the  lake-dwellings 
of  Switzerland,  in  innumerable  caves  of 
the  Neolithic  Period,  in  the  terramare  of 
Upper  Italy,  etc.  It  was  partly  a  com- 
paratively small  breed,  according  to 
Kiitimeyer  similar  to  the  "  wachtelhund  " 
(setter)    in    size    and    build.      Kiitimeyer 

158 


calls  this  breed  the  lake-dwelling  dog, 
after  the  lake-dwellings,  one  of  the 
chief  places  where  it  has  been  found. 
Like  all  breeds  of  animals  of  primi- 
tive domestication,  the  dog  at  this 
period,  according  to  Nehring,  is  small — 
stunted,  as  it  were.  With  the  progress  of 
civihsation  the  dog  also  grows  larger. 

In  the  later  prehistoric  epochs,  beginning 
with  the  so-called  "  Bronze  "  Period,  we 
find  throughout  almost  the  whole  of 
Europe  a  rather  larger  and  more  powerful 
breed  with  a  more  pointed  snout — the 
Bronze  dog — whose  nearest  relative  seems 
to  be  the  sheep-dog.  At  the  present  day 
the  domestic  dog  is  mostly  employed  for 
guarding  settlements  and  herds  and  for 
hunting.  In  the  Arctic  regions  the  Es- 
quimaux also  use  their  dogs,  which  are 
like  the  sheep-dog,  for  personal  protection 
and  hunting  ;  they  do  particularly  good 
service  against  the  musk-ox,  while  the 
wild  reindeer  is  too  fast  for  them.  But 
the  Esquimau  dog  is  chiefly  used  for 
drawmg  the  sledge,  and,  where  the  sledge 
cannot  be  used,  as  a  beast  of  burden,  since 
it  is  unable  to  carry  fairly  heavy  loads.  In 
China  and  elsewhere,  as  for- 
merly in  the  old  civilised 
countries  of  South  America, 
the  dog  is  still  fattened  and 
killed  for  meat.  So  that  the  domestic 
dog  serves  every  possible  purpose  to  which 
domestic  animals  can  be  put,  except,  it 
seems,  for  milking,  although  this  would 
not  be  out  of  the  question  either.  The 
dog  was  also  eaten  by  man  in  the  later 
Stone  Age,  as  is  proved  by  the  finds  in 
his  kitchen  refuse.  The  reindeer  is  now 
restricted  to  the  Polar  regions  of  the  Nor- 
thern Hemisphere  —  Scandinavia,  North 
Asia,  and  North  America,  whereas  in  the 
Paheolithic  Period  it  was  very  numerous 
throughout  Russia,  Siberia,  and  temperate 
Europe  down  to  the  Alps  and  Pyrenees. 
It  does  not  seem  ever  to  have  been 
definitely  proved  that  the  reindeer  existed 
in  the  Neolithic  Period  of  Central  and 
Northern  Europe,  although  according  to 
Von  Zittel  it  lived  in  Scotland  down  to  the 
eleventh  century  and  in  the  Hercynian 
forest  until  the  time  of  Caesar.  The 
earliest  definite  information  we  appear 
to  have  of  the  tamed  reindeer,  which  at 
the  present  day  is  a  herd  animal  with  the 
Lapps  in  Europe,  and  with  the  Samoyedes 
and  Reindeer  Tunguses  in  Asia,  is  found 
in  /Elian,  who  speaks  of  the  Scythians 
having  tame  deer. 


Great  Value 

of  the 

Dog  to  Man 


PRIMITIVE    MAN    IN    THE    PAST    AND    THE    PRESENT 


Oxen  at  present  exist  nowhere  in  the 
wild  state,  while  the  tame  ox  is  distributed 
as  a  domestic  animal  over  the  whole  earth, 
and  has  formed  the  most  various  breeds. 
In  the  European  Drift  a  wild  ox,  the 
urus,  distinguished  by  its  size  and  the 
size  of  its  horns,  was  widely  distributed, 
and  it  still  lived  during  the  later  Stone 
Age  with  the  domestic  ox.  In  the  later 
prehistoric  ages,  and  even  in  historic 
times,  the  urus  still  occurs  as  a  beast  of 
the   forest. 

In  the  later  Stone  Age  the  horse,  too, 
is  no  longer  merely  a  beast  of  the  chase, 
but  occurs  also  in  the  tame  state.  During 
the  Drift  the  horse  lived  in  herds  all  over 
Europe,  North  Asia,  and  North  Africa. 
From  this  Drift  horse  comes  the  domestic 
horse  now  found  all  over  the  earth.  Even 
the  wild  horses  of  the  Drift  exhibit  such 
considerable  differences  from  one  another 
that,  according  to  Nehring's  studies,  these 
are  to  be  regarded  as  the  beginning  of 
the  formation  of  local  breeds.  The  taming 
and  domestication  of  the  wild  horse  of 
the  Drift,  which  began  in  the  Stone  Age, 
led  to  the  domestic  horse  being  split  up 
.       later    into    numerous   breeds. 

c    aming  ^^^^  ^^^^  ^-j^  horse  was  com- 

Wii/hofsc  Paratively  small,  with  a  large 
head  ;  a  similar  form  is  still 
found  here  and  there  on  the  extensive 
barren  moors  of  South  Germany  in  the 
moss-horse,  or,  as  the  common  people  call 
it,  the  moss-cat.  At  the  present  day  the 
genus  of  the  domestic  horse  falls,  like  the 
ox,  into  two  chief  breeds — a  smaller  and 
more  graceful  Oriental  breed,  and  a  more 
powerful  and  somewhat  larger  Western 
breed  with  the  facial  bones  more  strongly 
developed.  The  horse  of  the  later  Stone 
Age  of  Europe  exhibits  only  comparatively 
slight  differences  from  the  wild  horse ; 
it  is  generally  a  small,  half-pony-like  form 
with  a  large  head,  evidently  also  a  stunted 
product  of  primitive  breeding  under 
comparatively  unfavourable  conditions. 
Two  species  extant  in  the  Stone  Age 
still  live  wild  on  the  steppes  of  Central 
Asia  at  the  present  day ;  one  of  them 
also  occurs  as  a  fossil  in  the  European 
Drift,  although  only  rarely.  That  the 
ass  occurred  in  the  European  Drift  is 
probable,  but  not  proved.  It  has  not 
yet  been  found  in  the  Neolithic  Period  of 
Europe. 

A  survey  of  the  palaeontology  of  the 
domestic  animals  shows  that  they  come 
from  wild  Drift  species  which — at  any  rate, 


as  regards  the  ox,  horse,  and  dog — are  now 
extinct,  so  that  these  most  important  do- 
mestic animals  now  exist  only  in  the  tame 
state.  Some  of  the  domestic  animals  came 
from  Asia,  and,  according  to  Von  Zittel, 
were  imported  into  Europe  from  there  ; 
this  applies  to  the  peat-ox  and  the  domestic 
goat  and  pig.  The  Asiatic  origin  of  the 
domestic    horse    and   sheep   is 

*      ^  probable,  but  not  proved  ;  the 

Horse  come  ^,  •      r  i  i  j  o       ^i 

,  A  •  9  sheep  IS  found  wild  m  South 
from  Asia?    t-       ^  ,,         .       .    .       „, 

Europe  as  well  as  m  Asia.    Ihe 

tarpan,  a  breed  of  horse  very  similar  to  the 
wild  horse,  lives  in  herds  independent  of 
man  on  the  steppes  of  Central  Asia.  This 
has  been  indicated  as  being  probably  the 
parent  breed  of  the  domestic  horse,  and 
the  origin  of  the  latter  has  accordingly  also 
been  traced  to  Asia. 

One  thing  is  certain :  a  considerable 
number  of  animal  forms  that  co-exist 
with  man  in  Europe  at  the  present  day — 
for  instance,  almost  all  the  forms  of  our 
poultry  and  the  fine  kinds  of  pigs  and 
sheep — have  originally  come  from  Asia. 
Our  investigations  show  a  similar  state  ol 
things  even  in  the  Neolithic  Period. 

In  the  North  of  Europe,  which  has 
furnished  us  with  our  standard  information 
regarding  the  Neolithic  culture-stratum, 
the  certain  proofs  that  have  hitherto  been 
found  of  agriculture  and  the  cultivation 
of  useful  plants  having  been  practised  at 
that  time  (to  which  civilisation  owes  no 
less  than  to  the  breeding  of  useful  tame 
animals)  consist  not  so  much  of  plant 
remains  themselves  as  of  stone  hand-mills 
and  spinning  and  weaving  implements, 
which  indicate  the  cultivation  of  corn  and 
flax. 

Our  chief  knowledge  of  Neolithic  agri- 
culture and  plant  culture  has  been  fur- 
nished by  the  lake-dwellings,  especially 
those  of  Switzerland,  which  have  pre- 
served the  picture  of  the  Neolithic  civilisa- 
tion of  Central  Europe,  sketched  for  us,  cis 
it  were,  in  the  North,  in  its  finest  lines. 
„.  So  far  we  can  prove  the  cultiva- 

•  'th'T  k  ^^°^  ^^  ^^®  following  useful 
T,     „•  plants  in  the  later  Stone  Age; 

Dwellings      f,     .  i  •   a 

their      remains     were     chiefly 

found,  as  we  have  said,  well  preserved  in 
the  Stone  Age  lake-dwellings  of  Switzer- 
land, which  have  been  described  in 
classical  manner  by  Oswald  Heer.  Of 
cereal  grasses  Heer  determined,  in  the 
rich  Stone  Age  lake-dwellings  of  Wangen, 
on  Lake  Constance,  and  Robenhausen,  in 
Lake  Pfalfikon,  three  sorts  of  wheat  and 

159 


THE     DEVELOPMENT     OF    THE     HORSE 

The  horse  which  was  common  in  the  Stone  Age  was  a  wild  ancestor  of  our  own  domestic  horse,  but  not 
quite  so  large  or  so  strong  as  the  average  well-bred  creature  familiar  in  our  modern  life.  Its  remotest  ancestor 
was  the  Hyracotherium,  or  Orohippus,  while  an  intermediary  stage  was  that  of  the  Hypparion,  or  Protohippus, 
in  which,  as  shown  in  the  diagram,  the  change  from  the  foot  to  the  hoof  had  advanced  to  a  very  great  extent. 

i6o 


PRIMITIVE    MAN    IN    THE    PAST    AND    THE    PRESENT 


two  varieties  of  barley — the  six-rowed  and 
two-rowed.  Flax  was  also  grown  by 
Neolithic  Man.  This  was,  it  seems,  a 
rather  different  variety  from  our  present 
flax,  being  narrow-leaved,  and  still  occurs 
wild,  or  probably  merely  uncultivated, 
in  Macedonia  and  Thracia.  Flax  has  also 
been  found  growing  wild  in  Northern  India, 
on  the  Altai  Mountains,  and  at  the  foot 
of  the  Caucasus. 

The  common  wheat  occurring  in  the  lake- 
dwellings  of  the  Stone  Age  is  a  small- 
grained  but  mealy  variety  ;  but  the  so- 
called  Egyptian  wheat  with  large  grains 
also   occurs. 

Traces  of  regular  gardening  and  vege- 
table culture  are  altogether  wanting.  Some 
finds,  however,  seem  to  indicate  primitive 
arboriculture,  apples  and  pears  having  been 
found  dried  in  slices  in  the  lake-dwellings 
of  the  Stone  Age  ;  there  even  appears  to 
be  an  improved  kind  of  apple  besides  the 
wild-growing  crab.  But  although  they  are 
chiefly  wild  unimproved  fruit-trees  of 
whose  fruit  remains  have  been  found,  we 
can  imagine  that  these  fruit-trees  were 
planted  near  the  settlements,  and  the  great 
P  .        nutritious     and     health-giving 

•  *fK  ^"^"^^  properties  of  the  fruit,  as  a 
St  A  supplement  to  a  meat  fare, 
must  have  been  all  the  more 
appreciated  owing  to  the  lack  of  green 
vegetables.  The  various  wild  cherries, 
plums,  and  sloes  were  eaten,  as  also 
raspberries,  blackberries,  and  straw- 
berries. Beechnut  and  hazelnut  appear 
as  wild  food-plants. 

The  original  home  of  the  most  important 
cereals — wheat,  spelt,  and  barley — is  not 
known  with  absolute  certainty  ;  probably 
they  came  from  Central  Asia,  where  they 
are  said  to  be  found  wild  in  the  region  of 
the  Euphrates.  The  real  millet  came  from 
India  ;  peas  and  the  other  primeval  legu- 
minous plants  of  Europe,  such  as  lentils 
and  beans,  came  likewise  from  the  East, 
partly  from  India.  So  that,  apart  from 
flax,  which  probably  has  a  more  northern 
home,  the  regular  cultivated  plants  of  the 
Stone  Age  of  Central  Europe — cereal 
grasses,  millet,  and  lentils — indicate  Asia 
as  their  original  home.  We  have  therefore  a 
state  of  things  similar  to  that  observed  in 
the  case  of  the  domestic  animals. 

The  potter's  art  was  probably  entirely 
unknown  to  Palaeolithic  Man,  for  in  none  of 
the  pure  Drift  finds  have  fragments  of  clay 
vessels  been  found.  So  where  clay  vessels 
or  fragments  of  them  occur,  they  appear  as 


the  proof  of  a  pwst-Drift  period.  On  the 
other  hand,  pottery  was  quite  general  in 
the  Neolithic  Age  of  Europe.  Still,  the 
need  of  clay  vessels  is  not  general  among 
all  races  of  the  earth  even  at  the  present 
day ;  up  to  modern  times  there  were, 
and  still  are,  races  and  tribes  without 
pots.  From  their  practices  it  is  evident 
.     .  that  the  European  Stone  men 

f^fh'*'*"^^  of  the  Drift  could  also  manage 
p  •  A  t  **^  prepare  their  food,  chiefly 
meat,  by  fire  without  cooking 
vessels.  The  Fuegians  lay  the  piece  of 
meat  to  be  roasted  on  the  glowing  embers 
of  a  dying  wood  fire,  and  turn  it  with  a 
pointed  forked  branch  so  as  to  keep  it 
from  burning.  Meat  thus  prepared  is  very 
tasty,  as  it  retains  aU  the  juice  and  only 
gets  a  rind  on  the  top,  and  the  ashes  that 
adhere  to  it  serve  as  seasoning  in  lieu  of 
salt.  On  a  coal  fire  not  only  can  fish  be 
grilled,  stuck  on  wooden  rods,  but  whole 
sheep  can  be  roasted  cm  wooden  spits, 
precisely  as  people  have  the  dainty  of 
roast  mutton  in  the  East.  To  these  maj^  be 
added  a  large  number  of  other  methods  of 
roasting,  and  even  boiling,  without  earthen 
or  metal  vessels,  which  are  partly  vouched 
for  by  ethnography  and  partly  by  archae- 
ology, and  some  of  which,  like  the  so-called 
"  stone-boiling,"  are  stiU  practised  at  the 
present  day. 

Although,  according  to  this,  pottery  is 
not  an  absolute  necessary  of  life  for  man, 
yet  it  is  certain  that  even  those  poorly 
equipped  pioneers  who  first  settled  in 
Denmark  in  the  Pine  Period,  in  spite  of 
their  having  an  almost  or  quite  exclusive 
meat  fare,  had  clay  pottery  in  general  use 
for  preparing  their  food,  and  probably  also 
for  storing  their  provisions.  As  we  have 
already  shown,  the  remains  that  have  been 
preserved  in  the  kitchen-middens  are  the 
oldest  that  have  been  found  in  Denmark. 
Simple  and  rude  as  the  numerous  pot- 
sherds that  occur  may  appear,  they  are 
of    the    highest    importance    on    account 

No  Perfect      °^  *^^  ^^°°^  °^  ^^^^^  ^^^^^  ^^6- 


Pottery  in  the 


Unfortunately,    as    we    have 

jj.        .  already    seen,    not    a    smgle 

Stone  Age  .     f  i    i  '^^ 

perfect    vessel  has    come     to 

light.     The  fragments  are  very  thick,  of 

rough  clay  with  bits    of   granite  worked 

in,  and  are  all  made  by  hand  without  the 

use  of    the    potter's    wheel.     The   pieces 

partly  indicate   large   vessels,  some  with 

flat  bottoms,  and  others  with  the  special 

characteristic  of  pointed  bottoms,  so  that 

the  vessel  could  not  be  stood  up  as  it  was. 

i6i 


PRIMITIVE    MAN    IN    THE    PAST    AND    THE    PRESENT 


Smaller  bowls,  frequently  of  an  oval 
form,  also  occurred  with  rounded  bot- 
toms, so  that  they  also  could  not  stand 
by  themselves.  It  is  very  important  to 
note  that  on  these  fragments  of  jiottery 
we  find  only  extraordinarily  scanty  and 
exceedingly  simple  ornamental  decora- 
tions, consisting  merely  of  incisions,  or 
impressions  made  with  the  fingers,  on  the 
upper  edge. 

We  shall  see  how  far  this  oldest  pottery 
of  the  Stone  Age  is  distinguished  by  its 
want  of  decoration  from  that  of  the  fully- 
developed  Stone  Age.  But  it  is  very  im- 
portant to  notice  that  this  rudest  mode  of 
making  clay  vessels,  which  we  here  see 
forming  the  beginning  of  a  whole  series  that 
rises  to  the  highest  pitch  of  artistic  perfec- 
tion, remained  in  vogue  not  only  during 
the  whole  Stone  Age,  but  even  in  much 
later  times. 

It  is  true  that  in  the  fully  developed 
neolithic  Stone  Age  of  Europe  the  clay 
pottery  is  also  all  made  by  hand,  without 
the  potter's  wheel,  the  oldest  and  rudest 
forms  still  occurring  everywhere,  as  we 
have  said  ;  but  besides  these  a  great 
variety  is  exhibited  in  the  size, 
tone  ^  gc     j^j-j^^  g^j^fj  mode  of  production 

„°  "  *  ,      of   the   pottery.     The  clay    is 

Handwork         r,  r  -^    ■,  -^     •■ 

often  finer,  and  even  quite 
finely  worked  and  smoothed,  and  the  vessels 
have  thin  sides  and  are  burnt  right  through. 
The  thick  fragments  are  generally  only 
burnt  outside,  frequently  only  on  one  side, 
and  so  much  that  the  clay  has  acquired  a 
bright  red  colour,  whereas  the  inside, 
although  hard,  has  remained  only  a  greyish 
black.  We  have  numerous  perfectly  pre- 
served vessels  of  the  later  Neolithic  Age. 
They  are  frequently  distinguished  by  an 
artistic  finish  and  beauty  of  form,  and  on 
their  surfaces  we  find  ornaments  incised 
or  imprinted,  but  rarely  moulded  on  them, 
which,  although  the  style  is  only  geometri- 
cal, cannot  be  denied  a  keen  sense  of  beauty 
and  symmetry.  The  clay  vessels  also 
show  the  beginning  of  coloured  decoration. 
The  incised  strokes,  dots,  etc.,  are  often 
filled  out  with  white  substance  (chalk 
or  plaster),  which  brings  the  patterns  out 
into  bold  ornamental  relief  from  the  black 
or  red  ground  of  the  surface. 

After  that  it  is  no  wonder  that  pottery 
advanced  to  the  real  coloured  painting 
of  the  vessels  during  the  Neolithic  Period, 
at  least  in  some  places. 


On  these  vessels  the  handle  now  appears, 

in  its  simplest  form  as  a  wart-like  or  flatter 

projection   from   the   side   of   the   vessel, 

pierced   either   vertically   or   horizontally 

with  a  narrow  opening  just  large  enough 

to  admit  of  a  cord  being  passed  through. 

Other  handles,  just  like  those  in  use  at  the 

present  day,  are  bowed  out  broad,  wide, 

and  high  for  holding  with  the 

/a^.-  .■       hand.     These   generally   begin 
of  Artistic  -,        .   ii       i  i  iu  ( 

_  quite  at  the  top,  at  the  rim  ot 

the  vessel,  and  are  continued 
from  there  down  to  its  belly,  whereas  the 
first -mentioned  are  placed  lower,  fre- 
quently around  the  greatest  circumference 
of  the  vessel. 

There  is  no  doubt  whatever  that  in  the 
main  these  clay  vessels  were  made  on 
the  spot  where  we  find  their  remains  at 
the  present  day.  This  easily  explains  the 
local  peculiarity  that  we  recognise  in 
various  finds,  by  which  certain  groups  may 
be  defined  as  more  or  less  connected  with 
one  another.  Different  styles  may  be 
clearly  distinguished  by  place  and  groujx 
But,  this  notwithstanding,  wherever  we 
meet  with  neolithic  ceramics,  they  cannot 
conceal  their  homogeneous  character.  In 
spite  of  all  peculiarities  this  general 
uniform  style  of  the  ceramics  of  the  Stone 
Age,  which  we  can  easily  distinguish  and 
determine  even  under  its  various  dis- 
guises, goes  over  the  whole  of  Europe. 

In  finds  that  lie  nearer  to  the  old  Asiatic 
centres  of  civilisation  and  to  the  coasts  of 
the  Mediterranean— as,  for  instance,  at 
Butmir — the  vessels  are  in  part  better 
worked,  and  the  ornaments  are  richer 
and  more  elegant,  and  the  spirals  more 
frequent  and  more  regular,  and  are  some- 
times moulded  on,  and  sometimes,  as  we 
have  mentioned,  even  painted  in  colour. 
But  the  general  character  remains  un- 
mistakably Neolithic,  and  may  be  found 
not  only  on  the  Euro]:)ean  coasts  of  the 
Mediterranean  and  the  islands 
of  the  yEgean  Sea,  but  in  cer- 


The  Proofs  of 
Man's  Mental 
Development 


tain  respects  also  in  Mesopo- 
tamia and  Egypt.  The  eldest 
Trojan  pottery  also  exhibits  unmistak- 
able points  of  agreement  with  it. 

Not  only  the  stone  weapons  and  im])!e- 
ments,  but,  as  far  as  we  can  see,  even  the- 
remains  of  the  oldest  ceramics,  show  that 
uniform  development  of  the  culture  of  the 
Neolithic  Period  which  proves  a  like  course 
of  mental  develoi)ment  in  mankind. 


163 


THE     WORLD 

BEFORE 
HISTORY— V 


Professor 

JOHANNES 

RANKE 


THE    HOME    LIFE    OF    PRIMITIVE    FOLK 


What  the 
L&ke  Dwell 
ings  Tell 


A  PICTURE,  of  unequalled  clearness  of 
■**■  delineation,  of  the  general  conditions 
of  the  life  and  culture  of  Central  European 
Man  during  the  Neolithic  Period,  was 
given,  according  to  the  results  of  the  cele- 
brated researches  of  Ferdinand  Keller  and 
his  school  of  Swiss  archaeologists,  by  the 
lake-dwellings  in  the  Alj)ine  lowlands. 
Whereas  in  cave  districts 
the  caves  and  grottos  often 
served  the  men  of  the  later 
Stone  Age  as  temporary  and 
even  as  piermanent  winter  dwellings,  in  the 
watery  valleys  of  Switzerland  the  Neolithic 
population  built  its  huts  on  foundations  of 
piles  in  lakes  and  bogs.  In  that  period  we 
have  to  imagine  the  Alpine  lowlands  still 
extensively  covered  with  woods  and  full  of 
wild  beasts  ;  at  that  time  the  huts 
standing  on  piles  in  the  water  must  have 
afforded  their  inhabitants  a  security  such 
as  scarcely  any  other  place  could  have 
given.  The  first  founders  and  inhabitants 
of  settlements  of  pile-dwellings  in  Switzer- 
land belong  to  the  pure  Stone  Period. 
In  spite  of  their  lake-dwellings  the  old 
Neolithic  men  of  Switzerland  appear  to 
have  possessed  almost  all  the  important 
domestic  animals,  but  they  also  knew  and 
practised  agriculture.  They  lived  by  cattle- 
rearing,  agriculture,  hunting,  and  fishing, 
and  on  wild  fruit  and  all  that  the  plant 
world  freely  offered  in  the  way  of  eataliles. 
Their  clothing  consisted  ])artly  of  skins, 
but  partly  also  of  stuffs,  the  majority  of 
which  .seem  to  have  been  prepared  from 
flax. 

The  endeavour  of  the  .settlers  to  live 

together  in  lasting  homes  protected  from 

.     .  surjirises,   and  in  large  num- 

Beginnings     ^^^.^.^^  -^  ^^  unmistakable  proof 

s  *■  lO  A  ^^^'^^  they  were  aware  of  the 
advantages  of  a  settled  mode  of 
life,  and  that  we  have  not  to  imagine  the 
inhabitants  of  the  pile-dwellings  as  nomadic 
herdsmen,  and  still  le.ss  as  a  regular  race 
of  hunters  and  fishermen.  The  permanent 
concentration  of  a  large  number  of 
individuals  at  the  same  ]X)int,  and  of 
hundreds  of  families  in  neighbouring  inlets 
of  the  lakes,  could  not  have  taken  jilace  if 

164 


there  had  not  been  through  all  the  seasons 
a  regular  supply  of  provisions  derived 
principally  from  cattle-rearing  and  agri- 
culture, and  if  there  had  not  existed  the 
elements  of  social  order.  Even  the  establish- 
ment of  the  lake-settlement  itself  is  not 
possible  for  the  individual  man  ;  a  large 
commvmity  must  have  here  worked  with  a 
common  plan  and  purpose.  Herodotus 
describes  a  pile-village  in  Lake  Prosias,  in 
Thracia,  which  was  inhal)ited  by  Pieones, 
who  defended  it  successfully  against  the 
Persian  general  Megabazos.  The  scaffold 
on  which  the  huts  were  built  stood  on  high 
piles  in  the  middle  of  the  lake  ;  it  was 
connected  with  the  bank  only  by  a  single, 
easily  removable  bridge.    Herodotus  says  : 

The  piles  on  which  the  scaffolds  rest  were 
erected  in  olden  times  by  the  citizens  in  a 
body  ;  the  enlargement  of  the  lake-settle- 
ment took  place  later,  acconling  as  it  was 
necessitated  by  the  formation  of  new 
families. 

According  to  the  large  numl  er  of  lake- 
dwellings  of  the  Stone  Age  in  the  Alpine 
lowlands,  and  according  to  the 

^  *  ^  large  quantity  of  j)roducts  of 
aTh  ^^  primitive  industry  that  have 
"  been  found  there,  centuries 
must  have  elapsed  between  the  moment 
when  the  first  settlers  rammed  in  the  piles 
on  which  to  build  their  dwellings  and  the 
end  of  the  Stone  Period. 

The  huts  of  the  settlements  of  the  Stone 
Age  were  j^artly  rovmd  and  partly  quad- 
rangular, and,  like  the  pile-hut  discovered 
by  Frank  near  Schussenried,  were  divided 
into  two  compartments — one  for  the  cattle, 
and  the  other,  with  a  hearth  built  of 
stones,  for  the  dwelling  of  man.  The  floor 
of  the  hut  was  made  of  round  timber 
with  a  mud  foundation,  and  perhaps 
also  with  a  mud  flooring ;  in  Frank's 
hut  the  walls  were  formed  of  split  tree- 
trunks,  standing  vertically  with  the  split 
sides  turned  inward,  firmly  put  together 
between  corner  jwsts.  The  round  huts 
had  walls  of  roughly  intertwined  branches, 
covered  with  clay  inside  and  out  ;  of  this 
clay-plaster  numerous  pieces  have  been 
})reserved,  hardened  by  fire,  with  the  marks 


THE    HOME    LIFE    OF    PRIMITIVE    FOLK 


of  the  branches.  The  pile  huts  of  the  lakes 
were  connected  with  the  waTer  by  block 
or  rung  ladders.  Victor  Cross  found  such 
a  ladder  in  one  of  the  oldest  stations  ; 
it  consisted  of  a  long  oak  pole  provided 
at  fairly  regular  intervals  with  holes 
in  which  the  rungs  were  inserted. 

Of  special  importance  in  estimating  the 
degree  of  civilisation  attained  by  the 
lake-dwellers  of  the  Stone  Age  are  the 
remains  of  spinning  and  weaving  imple- 
ments and  of  webs  and  textile  fabrics, 
plaited  work,  etc.  Flax  has  been  found 
wound  on  the  implements  made  of  ribs, 
that  we  mentioned  above  as  flax  combs ; 
we  have  also  mentioned  the  fixing  of  blades 
with  liax,  or  threads  made  of  it,  and 
the  numerous  wide  and  narrow  nets  made 
of  threads.  For  spinning  the  thread, 
spindles  were  used  just  like  those  of  the 
present  day,  a  spindle-stick  of  wood 
being  fastened  into  a  spinning-whorl 
made  of  stone,  deer-horn,  or 
clay.  The  distaff  was  probably 
not  yet  known  ;  a  loom  has 
not  yet  been  found,  either  ;  but 
numerous  weaver's  weights,  which  served 
for  spinning  the  threads,  have  been.  Excel- 
lent webs,  some  of  them  twilled,  were 
produced,  of  which  we  have  many  frag- 
ments. Remains  of  mats  and  baskets  prove 
that    those   were  manufactured  from  the 


In  a 

Stone  Age 
Kitchen 


First 

Traces  of 
Textiles 


materials  still  employed  at  the  present 
day.  Corn  was  baked  into  a  kind  of  bread 
consisting  of  coarsely  ground  grains.  The 
millstones  that  were  used  for  grinding  the 
corn  are  found  in  large  numbers.  They 
are  rather  worn,  hollowed  slabs  of  stone, 
and  smaller  flat  stones  rounded 
on  the  top,  with  which  the 
grains  of  corn  were  crushed  on 
the  larger  slabs.  Some  of  the 
kitchen  utensils  we  find  already  much 
improved.  Large  and  small  pots  for  stor- 
ing purposes,  earthen  cooking  pots,  and 
dishes,  and  large  wooden  spoons  and  twirl- 
ing-sticks — the  latter  probably  for  churn- 
ing— have  been  preserved.  Vessels  like 
strainers  served  for  making  cheese  ;  they 
are  pots  in  whose  sides  and  bottoms  a 
number  of  small  holes  were  made  for 
pouring  off  the  whey  from  the  cheese. 

Here,  in  the  fully  developed  Neolithic 
Period  we  find  the  early  inhabitants  of 
Switzerland  to  be  a  settled  agricultural  and 
farming  population.  Although  hunting 
and  fishing  still  furnished  an  important 
part  of  their  food,  so  that  in  some  places 
even  more  deer  bones  have  been  found 
among  the  cooking  remains  than  bones  of 
the  ox,  yet  the  milk,  cheese,  and  butter  of 
the  cows,  sheep,  and  goats,  the  tiesh  of  these 
and  of  the  hog,  and  bread  and  fruit,  already 
formed  the  basis  of  their  subsistence. 


A  PRIMITIVE   STYLE  OF   DWELLING   STILL  WIDESPREAD   IN   SAVAGE  LANDS 

The   lakedweUings   still   in   use   in    New    Guinea,    illustrated    in    this    reproduction    from    an   old    work, 

D'Urville's   "Voyage    of   the    Astrolabe,"  are  exactly   like    the    lake  dwelhngs   of  prehistoric    Europe. 

165 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


The  results  of  cave  research  are  almost  as 
rich  and  varied  as  the  results-  yielded  by 
the  study  of  the  lake-dwellings  in  their  bear- 
ing on  the  Neohthic  stratum.  Where  there 
is  a  Drift  stratum  in  the  cave-earth  the  con- 
fusion of  Palaeolithic  and  Neolithic  objects 
can,  as  we  have  said,  scarcely  be  avoided. 
But  there  are  numerous  grottos  and  small 
caves  in  which  the  Neolithic 
Man  Learmng  g^j-atum  is  the  oldest,  SO  that 

*  ^  r  I  •  •  mistakes  are  out  of  the  ques- 
Art  of  Living    ^.^^       j^    ^   ^^^^^    ^^^^^^^  ^f 

such  places  in  the  cave  district  of  the  Fran- 
conian-Bavarian  Jura  the  conditions  under 
which  finds  have  been  made  in  the  Neo- 
lithic stratum  have  proved  almost  as  pure 
and  unmixed  as  in  the  lake-dwellings. 

The  cave-dweller'^  of  the  later  Stone  Age 
in  the  Franconian  Jura  were,  like  the 
Swiss  lake-dwellers  of  the  Stone  Age, 
mainly  a  pastoral  race.  They  possessed 
all  the  important  domestic  animals  that 
the  latter  possessed — dog,  cow,  horse, 
sheep,  goat,  pig — and  likewise  practised 
agriculture,  or,  at  any  rate,  ffax-growing  ; 
at  the  same  time  hunting  and  fishing  formed 
a  considerable  part  of  their  means  of  sub- 
sistence. So  that,  not  only  on  artificial 
pile-works  on  the  shores  of  lakes,  but 
also  on  the  banks  of  South  German  rivers, 
there  formerly  lived  a  race  which,  al- 
though still  mainly  restricted  to  hunting 
and  fishing,  and  using  no  metal,  but 
exclusively  stone  and  bone  tools,  already 
practised  cattle-breeding  and  primitive 
agriculture,  and  was  able  to  increase  the 
means  of  existence  afforded  it  by  Nature 
by  the  first  technical  arts — by  the  chipping 
and  grinding  of  stone  instruments,  bone 
carving,  and,  above  all.,  pottery-making, 
tanning,  and  the  arts  of  sowing,  weav- 
ing and  plaiting. 

Of  most  importance,  as  showing  the 
state  of  civilisation  of  the  Neolithic  rock- 
dwellers,  are  the  numerous  articles  carved 
from  bone  that  must  be  looked  upon  as 
instruments  for  weaving  and  net-knitting. 
For  the  latter  purpose  there 
were  large,  finely-smoothed 
bone  crochet-needles,  some  of 
them  carved  from  the  rib  of  a 
large  ruminant.  The  handle-end  is 
smoothed  by  use,  and  the  end  with  the 
hook  is  rounded  from  the  same  cause. 
The  end  is  frequently  perforated,  so  that 
it  might  be  hung  up.  Still  more  numerous 
were  shuttles  of  various  forms. 

According  to  the  numerous  finds  of 
perforated    clay    weaver's    weights,    the 

i66 


Beginning 
of  Weaving 
and  Knitting 


loom,  like  that  of  the  lake-dwellers,  must 
have  been  like  the  ancient  implement 
that,  according  to  Montelius,  was  in  use 
on  the  Faroe  Islands  a  comparatively 
short  time  ago.  Spinning-whorls  are  very 
numerous,  being  partly  fiat,  round  discs 
of  bone  pierced  in  the  centre,  and  partly 
thick  bone  rings  or  large  beads  of  bone 
and  deer-horn  and  flat  burr-pieces  of  deer- 
antlers. 

It  was  formerly  thought  that  the  Neo- 
lithic Europeans  did  not  possess  the  arts 
of  engraving  and  carving  animals  and 
human  figures  which  the  Palaeolithic  Men 
had  understood  in  such  conspicuous 
manner.  The  progress  of  research  has 
now  produced  more  and  more  proof  that 
in  the  later  Stone  Age  the  arts,  of  carving 
and  engraving  had  not  died  out.  We  have 
the  celebrated  amber  carvings  of  the 
later  Stone  Age  from  the  Kurisches  Haff, 
near  Schwarzort,  some  of  which  probably 
served  a  religious  purpose  ;  those  of  ivory, 
bone,  stalactite,  etc.,  from  the  caves  of 
France  and  the  Polish  Jura  ;  the  figures 
from  Butmir,  and  other  evidences. 

In  Italy,  in  Lombardy,  and  Emilia, 
another  group  of  settlements  of  the  Stone 
Age  has  been  found,  which 
again  exhibit  the  civilisation 
and  all  other  signs  of  the 
later  Stone  Age,  and  in  many 
respects  more  closely  resemble  the  lake- 
dwellings  than  do  the  cave-dwellings. 
These  aie  the  "  terramare,"  whose  inhabi- 
tants, however,  had  already  to  some  extent 
advanced  to  the  use  of  bronze.  A  sharp 
division  of  strata  into  habitation  of  the 
pure  Stone  Age  and  habitation  of  the  Metal 
Age  has  not  yet  been  made.  The  huts  stood 
on  pile-work  on  dry  land,  the  piles  being 
six  to  ten  feet  high  ;  the  whole  settlement 
was  fortified  with  trench  and  rampart, 
generally  with  palisades,  and  was  of  an 
oblong  or  oval  plan.  Besides  many 
natural  and  artificial  caves  in  Italy  the 
dwelling-pits,  which  may  formerly  have 
borne  the  superstructure  of  a  hut,  also 
belong  to  the  pure  Stone  Age. 

Such  dwelling-pits  of  the  Stone  Age 
seem  to  have  been  distributed  all  over 
Europe.  Burnt  wall-plaster  with  impres- 
sions of  interwoven  twigs,  has  frequently 
been  found  near  or  in  the  pits,  doul^tless 
indicating  hut-building.  In  Mecklenburg, 
where  the  dwelling-pits  were  first  carefully 
examined  by  Liesch,  they  have  a  circular 
outline  of  ten  to  fifteen  yards,  and  are  five 
to  six  and  a  half  feet  deep.     At  the  bottom 


Fortified 
Settlements  in 
Stone  Age 


LAKE-DWELLERS   RETURNING   FROM   THE    HUNT    IN   THEIR    DUG-OUT  CANOES 
From  a  painting  by  Hippolyte   Coutau,  in  the  Geneva  Museum. 

167 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


of  the  pit  lie  burnt  and  blackened  stones, 
hearthstones,  charcoal,  potsherds,  broken 
bones  of  animals,  and  a  few  stone  imple- 
ments, the  latter  being  mostly  found  in 
larger  numbers  in  the  vicinity  of  the 
dwellings.  The  same  circular  dwelling- 
pits  of  the  Stone  Age  are  found  in  France. 
Smaller  hearth-pits  were  recently  found  in 
very  large  numbers  in  the 
range        Spessart,  in  Bavaria,  with  hun- 

Homes  of         '^ 


Early  Man 


dreds    of   stone    hatchets    and 


perforated  axe-hammers,  some 
ot  the  former  being  very  finely  made  of 
jadeite. 

During  the  Neolithic  Period  dwellings 
were  frequently  made  on  heights,  and  it 
.seems  that  even  at  that  time  they  were  to 
a  certain  extent  walled  round  and  fortified. 
Such  settlements  are  numerous  all  over 
Southern  and  Central  Germany,  in  Austria- 
Hungary,  especially  in  the  coast-country, 
and  in  Italy  and  France.  Many  of  these 
stations  belong  purely  to  the  Stone  Age  ; 
indeed,  the  majority  were  inhabited 
already  during  the  Stone  Age,  and  furnish 
the  typical  Neolithic  relics  familiar  from 
the  foregoing.  On  the  other  hand,  they  con- 
tinue to  be  inhabited  even  in  the  later  metal 
periods,  and  in  some  cases  right  down 
to  modern  times.  The  rock  near  Clausen, 
in  the  Eisack  valley,  in  the  Tyrol,  on  which 
the  large  Siiben  monastery  now  stands,  was 
a  mediaeval  castle,  and  during  the  times  of 
the  Romans  a  fortified  settlement  called 
Sobona  stood  there  ;  and  when  excava- 
tions were  made  in  1895,  for  adding  new 
buildings  to  the  monastery,  a  well-ground 
stone  hatchet  of  the  later  Stone  Age  came 
to  light.  On  many  hills  in  Central 
Germany  are  found  traces  of  the  ancient 
presence  of  men  who  lived  on  them  or 
assem])]ed  on  them  for  sacrificial  feasts  ; 
the  earth  is  coloured  black  by  charred 
remains  and  organic  influences,  and  this 
"  black  earth  on  heights  and  hills " 
contains  frequently,  as  we  have  said,  the 
traces  of  Neolithic  men.  In  Italy,  many 
finds  on  such  heights — for  in- 
stance, those  made  on  the  small 
castle-hill  near  Imola — seem  to 
exhibit  that  stage  of  the  Stone 
Age  that  is  missing  in  the  terramare,  and 
that  precedes  the  beginning  of  the  Metal 
Age  of  the  terramare,  but  corresponds  to 
it  in  every  essential  except  in  the  possession 
of  metal. 

But  the  view  that  is  opened  up  is  still 
wider.     The  prehistoric  times  of  the  New 
World    also    exhibit    a   Neolithic    stage, 
168 


America 

before 

History 


The 
Foundations 


corresponding  to  that  of  Europe,  as  the 
basis  of  the  further  development  of  the 
ancient  civilised  lands  of  America.  And 
where  a  higher  civilisation  did  not  develop 
autochthonously  in  America,  European 
discoverers  found  the  Neolithic  civilisation 
still  in  active  existence,  as  they  did  in  the 
whole  Australian  world.  Accordingly  in 
these  vast  regions,  which  have  never  risen 
above  the  Stone  Age  of  themselves,  the 
same  stage  of  civilisation  which  in  the  old 
civilised  lands  belongs  to  a  grey,  im- 
memorial, prehistoric  period,  here  stands 
in  the  broad  light  of  historic  times.  The 
study  of  modern  tribes  in  an  age  of  stone 
throws  many  a  ray  of  light  on  the  con- 
ditions of  the  prehistoric  Stone  Age ; 
and  this  study,  on  the  other  hand,  shows 
us  that  the  primitive  conditions  of  civil- 
isation of  those  tribes  stand  for  a  general 
stage  of  transition  in  the  development 
of  all  mankind. 

The  lake-dwelling  stations,  and  the 
land  settlements  resembling  them,  prove 
of  themselves  how  far  the  culture  of  the 
early  inhabitants  of  Europe  was  advanced 
even  in  that  ancient  period  which  was  for- 
merly imagined  to  be  scarcely 
raised  above  half-animal  con- 
.  „     .  ditions.    Such  structures  could 

not  be  erected  unless  men 
combined  into  large  social  communi- 
ties, which  is  indeed  indicated  by  the 
very  fact  of  the  number  of  dwellings  that 
were  crowded  into  a  comparatively  small 
space.  For  the  first  ramming-in  of  the 
pile-works  a  large  number  of  men  working 
together  on  a  common  plan  was  absolutely 
necessary.  The  same  ai')]ilies  to  the  con- 
struction of  the  artificial  islands,  protected 
by  pile-works  and  partly  resting  on  piles, 
termed  "crannoges"  by  Irish  archaeologists, 
and  to  the  Italian  villages  called  "  terra- 
mare," which  likewise  once  rested  on 
piles  and  were  protected  by  ditches. 
From  the  extent  of  the  pile-works  we  are 
able  to  estimate  the  number  of  the  former 
inhabitants  of  the  settlements  supported 
by  them.  Quite  as  clear  an  idea  of  the 
number  of  the  former  inhabitants  is  also 
given  by  the  early  circumvallations  on 
the  tops  of  hills  and  shoulders  of  rock, 
which  were  likewise  made  and  inhabited 
during  the  Stone  Age. 

The  co-operation  of  a  large  number  of 
men  for  a  common  j)urj)ose  is  also  shown 
in  the  often  huge  stone  structures  to  which, 
on  account  of  the  size  of  the  stones 
employed  in  their  construction,  the  name 


THE    FAMOUS    GIANT    CHAMBER    NEAR    ROSKILDE    IN    DENMARK 
"That    the  men   of   the    later    Stone    Age    had   developed   a    considerable    degree    of   culture    is    proved    by    s'lch 
remains  as  these.     The  erection   of  these   giant  chambers   must   have   called   for   a  vast   amount   of  co-operation, 
skill,    and    ingenuity.      The    means    whereby    the    massive    stones    were    placed    into    position,  and    so    fixed    to 
withstand    the    shocks    of    thousands    of    years,  have    not    yet    been    satisfactorily    explained    by   archaeology. 


"  megalithic  "  structures,  or  gigantic  stone 
structures,  has  been  given.  In  Northern 
Europe  they,  too,  belong  to  the  Stone  Age 
proper.  The  majority  of  these  gigantic 
structures  were  originally  tombs  ;  the 
principle  on  which  they  are  built  is  often 
repeated  even  in  far  less  imposing  tombs. 

The  stone  blocks  of  which  these  gigantic 
structures  are  piled  now  often  lie  bare. 
Large  stones  placed  crosswise,  which 
represent,  as  it  were,  the  side-walls  of  a 
room,  supj)ort  a  roof  of  one  or  several 
"  covering-stones  "  of  occasionally  colossal 
size.  For  the  erection  of  these  in  their 
present  position  without  the  technical 
resources  at  the  disposal  of  modern 
builders,  human  strength  appears  inade- 
quate ;  in  popular  opinion  only  giants 
could  have  made  such  structures.  Some 
of  the  stones  are  really  so  large,  and  the 
covering-stones  especially  so  enormous, 
that  these  buildings  have  defied  destruc- 
tion, for  thousands  of  years,  by  their  very 
weight. 

In  the  time  of  their  construction  these 
giants'  graves  were  mostly  buried  under 


mounds.  They  were  the  inner  structures 
of  large  tumuli,  in  which  the  reverence 
of  the  men  of  the  Stone  Age  once  buried 
its  heroes.  One  of  the  finest  "  giant's 
chambers  "  is  probably  that  near  Om, 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  Roskilde,  in 
Denmark.  The  building  material  consists 
merely  of  erratic  stone  blocks  of  enormous 
size.  The  rough  blocks  were  mostly  set 
up  by  the  side  of  one  another,  without 
any  further  working,  so  as  to  support  one 
another  as  far  as  possible  ;  at  the  same 
time  all  of  them,  as  Sophus  IMliller  observes, 
are  slightly  inclined  inward,  so  that  they 
are  kept  more  firmly  in  position  by  their 
own  weight.  The  stones  thus  erected, 
forming  the  parallel  side-walls  of  the 
whole  structure,  stand  so  far  apart  that 
a  huge  erratic  block,  reaching  from  one 
wall  to  the  other,  could  be  placed  on 
them  as  a  roof.  The  distance  between 
the  side-walls  of  the  giant's  chambers 
attains  a  maximum  of  eight  to  nine  feet ; 
the  covering-stones  placed  on  them  are 
some  ten  to  eleven  feet  long.  The  pressure 
of  the  covering-stones  from  above  helps 

169 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


considerably  to  hold  the  whole  struc- 
ture together.  In  order  to  distribute 
the  pressure  of  the  covering-stones 
regularly,  smaller  stones  were  carefully 
inserted  under  the  wall-stones  where 
they  had  to  stand  on  the  ground.  How 
exactly  these  proportions  of  weight 
were  judged  is  proved  by  the  fact 
that  these  structures  of  heavy  and 
irregular  stones,  resting  on  their 
natural,  differently  shaped  sides  and 
edges,  have  held  together  until  the 
present  day.  The  inner  walls  of 
the  chambers  were  made  as  care- 
fully as  possible.  Where,  as  on  the 
outside,  the  rough  and  irregular 
form  of  the  stone  block  projects, 
either  the  naturally  smooth  side  was 
turned  inward  or  the  roughness  was 
chipped  off. 

These  are  the  beginnings  of  a  real 
architecture,  seen  also  in  the  regu- 
lar wedging  with  small  stones  of  the 
spaces  left  between  the  wall-stones  and 
covering-stones  and  between  the  wall- 
stones  themselves.  These  small  stones 
were  frequently  built  in,  in  regular 
wall-like  layers.  Sandstone  was  often 
used  for  the  purpose,  being  more  easily 
split  into  regular  pieces,  which  gave 
this  masonry  a  still  more  pleasing  ap- 
pearance. The  number  of  stone  blocks 
used  for  the  wall-sides  varies  according 
to  the  size  of  the  giant's  chambers,  as 
does  also  the  number  of  covering- 
stones.  For  smaller  chambers,  with  six 
to  nine  wall-stones,  two  or  three  cover- 
ing-stones were  required.  But  far 
larger  stone  chambers  occur,  as  many 
as  seventeen  wall-stones  having  been 
counted.  Such  large  chambers  require 
a  whole  row  of  covering-stones  be- 
side one  another.  The  door-opening 
often  shows  a  special  regard  for 
architectonics.  The  two  door-post 
stones  are  rather  lower  than  the  other 
wall-stones ;  on  them  a  stone  was 
laid  horizontally,  which  kept  them 
apart  and  distributed  the  pressure 
of  the  covering-stone  equally  on  both 
posts. 

Very  often  there  was  also  a  stone  as 
a  threshold.  Leading  to  the  door  is  a 
low  passage,  made  in  similar  manner 
to  the  chamber,  but  of  far  smaller 
stones.  The  passage  is  only  high 
enough  to  allow  one  to  creep  through, 
whereas  the  chamber  itself  is  about  as 
high  as  a  man,  so  that  one  could  stand 


170 


^%-^x.^^r^!^S0 


"THE    MERCHANTS'    TABLE":    AN    IMMENSE    DOLMEN    ERECTED    IN    THE    STONE    AGE 
Archaeologists   are  not   entirely  agreed  as  to  the  purpose   of  these  dolmens.      They  were    more    likely  graves,  or 
chambers  associated  with  religious  rites,  than  residences.    This  example  is  at  Locmariaquer,  near  Carnac,  in  Brittany. 


upright  in  most  of  them.  Larger  stone 
chambers  are  rarely  without  this  pas- 
sage, and  from  it  such  grave-structures 
have  been  named  "  passage-graves." 
Besides  the  building-in  of  small  stones, 
the  holes  still  re- 
maining between  the 
stones  were  also 
coated  over  on  the 
outside  with  mud  to 
keep  the  rain-water 
from  soaking  in ; 
mud  was  also  fre- 
quently used  for 
making  a  rough 
plaster  floor  for  the 
chamber  if  the 
natural  floor  could 
not  be  made  level 
enough.  On  the  floor 
is  frequently  found  a 
compact  layer  of 
small  flints,  or  a 
regular  pavement  of 
fiat  stones,  often 
rough-hewn,  or 
roundish  stones  fit- 
ting one  another  as 
nearly  as  possible, 
which  were  then 
probably  also 
covered  with  a  thick 
layer  of  mud. 

So   that    in    these 


INTERIOR    OF    THE     "MERCHANTS'    TABLE" 
giant's    chambers   we    This  is  the  interior  of  the  above  dolmen.    It  will  be  seen  that 
bavp    rpal    bnilrlinp'';      the  earth  has  slowly  risen  a  great  height  since  it  was  erected, 
lldvc    lCd,l     UUlIUlIlgb,    nearly  covering  the  dolmen,  thus  indicating  immense  age. 
which       imply       high    The  principal  supporting  stone  is  covered  with  sculpture. 


technical  accomplishments  and  have  pre- 
served for  us  the  usual  form  of  the 
dwellings  of  those  early  times.  In  what 
manner  the  huge  covering-stones  were 
placed  on  the  side-walls  of  the  giant's 
chambers  is  a  pro- 
blem still  unsolved. 
Doubtless  many 
hands  were  occu- 
pied on  such  struc- 
tures ;  and  the 
history  of  building 
teaches  us  that  with 
the  proper  use  of 
human  strength — as, 
for  instance,  in 
ancient  Egypt — 
great  weights  can  be 
raised  and  placed  in 
position  with  very 
simple  tools — round 
pieces  of  wood  as 
rollers,  ropes,  and 
handspikes. 

Some  of  these 
giant's  chambers, 
which  were  origin- 
ally enclosed  in 
mounds  or  barrows, 
are  still  preserved  at 
the  present  day,  and 
splendidly  too.  Very 
often  the  chamber 
was  quite  covered 
with  earth  outside  ; 
it  then  formed  the 
centre  of  what  was 


171 


THE    HOME    LIFE    OF    PRIMITIVE    FOLK 


generally  a  circular  barrow,  often  regular 
small  hills  ten  to  fifteen  feet  high  and  fre- 
quently over  ninety  feet  in  circumference. 

The  corpses  were  buried,  not  cremated. 
They  were  frequently  in  a  crouching 
attitude,  or  that  of  a  sleeper  lying  side- 
ways with  the  legs  drawn  up  to  the  body. 
The  smaller  graves  often  represent  single 
interments  ;  .the  larger  or  largest  ones  are 
mostly  family  tombs,  in  which  numerous 
corpses  were  interred  one  after  the  other 
at  different  times.  But  this  repeated  use 
of  the  graves  is  found  also  with  smaller 
ones,  and  even  with  stone  cists.  Only 
the  last  corpse  then  lies  in  a  normal 
position,  while,  through  the  repeated 
opening  of  the  grave  and  the  later  inter- 
ments, the  skeletons  belonging  to  pre- 
viously interred  corpses  appear  more  or 
less  disturbed  or  intentionally  put  aside. 
The  skulls  of  the  corpses  interred  in  the  Neo- 
lithic graves  are  well  formed,  their  size  indi- 
cating a  very  considerable  brain  develop- 
ment. The  corpses  were  no  bigger  than  the 
present  inhabitants  of  the  same  districts, 
and  the  form  of  the  head  corresponds  partly 
with  that  of  the  present  population  of  those 
countries.  Nor  do  the  skeletons  otherwise 
differ  from  those  of  modern  men. 

In  America,  also,  gigantic  structures  were 
erected  by  the  aborigines  who  lived  in  the 
Stone  Age,  to  commemorate  and  to  protect 
their  dead.  They  consist  partly  of  large 
mounds  of  stones  and  earth,  which  are  like- 
wise often  regular  small  hills,  and  partly  of 
stone  structures  reminding  one  of  the  giants' 
chambers.  The  majority  of  the  mounds 
were  doubtless  mainly  sepulchral ;  others 
may  have  been  temple-hills  or  sacrificial 
mounds,  defensive  works  or  observatories. 
The  objects  buried  with  the  occupants 
belong  mostly  to  the  Neolithic  Period, 
and  consist  chiefly  of  stone  weapons  and 
tools,  some  rude,  but  others  finely  worked 
and  polished.  Some  are  of  pure  natural 
copper,  which  was  beaten  into  shape  cold 
with  stone  hammers.  Besides  these,  and 
ornaments  and  pottery,  an  American 
specialty  is  found  in  the  form  of  tobacco- 
pipes  carved  from  stone,  some  of  which 
give  interesting  representations  of  men 
and  animals  ;  this  seems  to  prove  that 
tobacco  also  played  a  part  in  the  American 
funeral  rites  of  those  times. 

The  graves  of  the  Neolithic  Period  not 
only  indicate  that  mankind  generally  was 
endowed  with  the  same  gifts  as  regards  the 
first  principles  of  the  art  of  building,  but 
they  also  afford  us  a  glimpse  of  the  mental 


life  of  that  period  of  civihsation  which 
at  a  more  or  less  distant  period  was  spread 
over  the  whole  earth.  What  is  so  charac- 
teristic is  the  affectionate  care  for  the 
corpse,  for  whose  protection  no  amount  of 
labour  and  trouble  appeared  too  great.  We 
can  have  no  doubt  that  this  reverence  was 
based  on  a  belief  in  the  immortality  of  the 
soul — a  belief  which  we  find  also"  at  the 
present  day  among  the  most  backward  and 
abandoned    "savages."       That    the    pre- 


HOW    STONE    AGE    MAN    WAS    BURIED 

Photogrraph  of  an  actual  skeleton,  in  position  of  burial, 
taken  from  a  prehistoric  mound  grave  in  North  America. 

historic  men  of  the  Stone  Age  held  this 
belief  is  proved  by  the  ornaments,  weapons, 
implements,  and  food  placed  with  the  dead 
for  use  in  the  next  world.  Their  burial  cus- 
toms certainly  express  a  kind  of  worship 
of  departed  souls  which  has  played  and 
still  plays  so  important  a  part  in  the 
religious  ideas  of  all  primitive  peoples,  and 
is  one  of  the  oldest  fundamental  notions 
common  to  mankind. 


173 


L 


174 


THE    WORLD 

BEFORE 
HISTORY— VI 


Professor 

JOHANNES 

RANKE 


WHEN    HISTORY    WAS    DAWNING 


THE  discovery  of  Drift  Man,  his  distinc- 
tion from  man  of  the  later  Stone  Age, 
the  investigation  of  the  Palaeohthic  and 
Neohthic  strata  of  culture  of  Europe  and  of 
the  whole  earth,  and  the  scientific  recon- 
struction of  the  earliest  forms  of  civilisa- 
tion based  on  these,  are  due  solely  to 
the  natural-science  method  of  research. 

It  was  only  when  the  exact  methods  of 
palaeontology  and  geology  had  been  brought 
to  bear  with  all  their  rigour  on  the  study 
of  ancient  man  by  savants  schooled  in 
natural  science  that  solid  results  were 
obtained.  On  this  sure  foundation  the 
science  of  history  now  continues  building, 
and  uses,  even  for  the  later  periods,  so  far 
as  recorded  information  is  not  available, 
and  to  supplement  it,  the  same  methods  of 
palaeontology  and  natural  science  which 
were  applied  so  successfully  to  the  earliest 
stages  of  the  evolution  of  mankind. 

The  first  point  is  to  collect  the  rehcs 
of  the  periods  of  the  evolution  of  culture 
which  follow  on  the  later 
Time-Table  _  g^^^^  j^  ^^^  ^^  separate 
of  Prehistoric  ^^^^  according  to  geological 
Periods  strata,  uninfluenced  by  those 

older  pseudo-historic  fancies  by  which  the 
deepening  of  our  historical  knowledge  has  so 
long  been  hindered.  By  carefully  separat- 
ing and  tracing  the  earth's  strata  till  we 
come  to  those  that  furnish  remains  of  times 
recorded  in  history,  it  has  been  possible 
to  establish  first  a  relative  chronology  of 
the  so-called  later  prehistoric  periods  of 
Central  Europe,  whose  offshoots  pass 
immediately  into  recorded  history. 

By  digging,  after  the  same  method  of 
palaeontological  science,  through  stratum 
after  stratum  in  the  oldest  centres  of  culture, 
especially  in  the  Mediterranean  countries, 
and  by  arranging  the  products  by  strata — 
uninfluenced  by  historical  hypotheses — 
after  the  same  natural-science  method  of 
research  which  has  produced  such  remark- 
able results  in  Central  Europe,  the  most 
surprising  conformity  in  the  evolution  of 
culture  in  widely  remote  regions  has  been 
shown.  It  was  found  that  in  the  Medi- 
terranean countries,  and  also  in  Egypt  and 
Babylonia,  forms  of  culture  already  belong 


to  the  time  of  real  history  which  were  first 
recognised  in  Central  Europe  as  pre- 
liminary prehistoric  stages  of  historical 
strata  ;  so  that  it  was  possible  also  to 
establish  an  absolute  historical  chronology 
for  those  instead  of  the  relative  prehistoric 
one. 

Thus  times  which,   as  regards  Central 
Europe,    were   hitherto   wrapped  in   pre- 
historic night  are  enlightened  by 
Europe  s  ^     history.     Although,  as  regards 
Prehistoric  ^g^^ral  and  Northern  Europe, 
^^  we  cannot  name  the  peoples  who 

were  the  bearers  of  those  forms  of  culture, 
and  although  we  disdain  to  give  them  a 
premature  nomenclature  of  hypothetical 
names,  yet  their  conditions  of  life  and 
culture  and  the  progressive  development 
of  these,  in  manifold  contact  and  inter- 
course with  neighbouring  and  even  far 
remote  historic  peoples  and  periods,  have 
risen  from  the  darkness  of  thousands  of 
years  ;  and  their  relation  in  time  to  the 
latter  has  been  recognised. 

Thus  prehistoric  times  have  themselves 
become  history.  The  historical  account 
of  every  single  region  has  henceforth  to 
begin  with  the  description  of  the  oldest 
antiquities  of  the  soil  that  tell  of  man's 
habitation,  in  order  thereby  to  obtain  the 
chronological  connection  with  the  evolu- 
tion of  the  history  of  mankind  generally. 
That  is  the  palaeontological  method  of 
historical  research. 

The  palaeontology  of  man  has  proved  the 
Stone  Age  to  be  a  general  primary  stage 
of  culture  for  the  whole  human  race. 
All  further  general  progress  in  culture 
was  affected  by  the  discovery  of  the  art  of 
metal-working — the  extraction 
Landmarks   ^j  ^^^   metals   from  their  ores 

°  ^'^"^  and  the  casting  and  forging  of 
Culture  ^^^^^       jy^^    ^^^^^    ^j^^     ^^^gg^ 

eras  of  culture  are  the  Metal  Ages,  as 
opposed  to  the  Stone  Ages.  It  is  not  the 
use  of  metal  in  itself,  but  the  above- 
mentioned  metallurgical  arts,  that  form 
the  criterion  of  the  advance  of  culture 
beyond  the  bounds  of  the  Stone  Age. 
Where,  as  in  some  parts  of  America,  native 
copper  was  found  in  abundance,  this  red 

^75 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


malleable  mineral  could  probably  be 
worked  in  the  same  way  as  stone,  without 
any  further  progress  necessarily  develop- 
ing therefrom.  The  same  may  apply  to 
m  e  t  eor-iron, 
which  is  said  to 
have  been  used 
for  arrows,  to- 
gether with 
stone  points,  by 
American  tribes 
who  were  other- 
wise in  the  age 
of  stone  and  but 
poorly  civilised. 

In  civilised 
lands  it  is  chieHy 
metal  casting 
and  the  forging 
of  the  heated 
metal  which 
have  made  it 
possible  to  pro- 
duce better  wea- 
pons and  tools 
and  more  valu- 
able ornaments. 
The  worked 
metals  are  first 
copper,  then  the 
alloy  of  copper 
and  tin  that 
bears  the  name 
of  classical 
bronze,  and  to  these  are  soon  added  gold 
and — especially  in  districts  rich  in  the 
metal,  as  in  Spain — silver.  Later  on  the 
extraction  of  iron  from  its  ores  and  the 
forging  of  that  metal  are  discovered. 

According  to  this  course  of  metallurgical 
progress  the  first  metal  period  is  distin- 
guished as  the  Bronze  Period,  which  is 
begun  by  a  Copper  Period  lasting  more 
or  less  long  in  different  places.  The  second 
or  later  metal  period  is  the  Iron  Period,  in 
which  we  are  living  at  the  present  day. 
In  the  course  of  time,  by  gradually  dis- 
placing bronze  and  copper  from  the  rank 
of  metals  worked  for  weapons  and  tools, 
this  Iron  Age  has  developed  to  its  present 
stage. 

In  Central  Europe  the  pile-dwellings  in 
the  lakes  of  Western  Switzerland  again 
present  us  with  specially  clear  and  unin- 
terrupted series  of  illustrations  of  the 
progress  of  culture  from  the  Stone  Age  to 
the  Iron  Age.  Ending  the  Stone  Age,  we 
find  first  a  period  of  transition,  in  which, 
while  stone  continued  to  be  principally 

176 


Growth  of  ihe  wings 
THE  TRANSITION    FROM   STONE  TO  IRON 
This  series  of  diagrams,  reproduced  from  specimens  in  the  British 
Museum,  by  permission  of  the  Trustees,  shows  how  the  stone  axe- 
head  was  used  as  the  model  for  the  metal  axe  or  celt,  and  how  that  in 
turn  was  modified  as  workers  gained  experience  in  the  use  of  the  metal 


employed,  a  few  ornaments,  weapons,  and 
tools  of  metal  began  to  be  used.  This 
metal  is  at  first  almost  exclusively  copper, 
with  only  very  little  bronze  ;   iron  is  quite 

absent.  Copper 
objects  have 
been  found  in 
Western  Switzer- 
land by  Victor 
Gross,  most 
extensively  in 
Fenel's  lake- 
dwelling  station, 
which  otherwise 
still  belongs  to 
the  Stone  Age. 
The  majority  of 
these  are  smaU 
daggers,  formed 
after  the  pattern 
of  the  flint  dag- 
gers ;  some 
already  possess 
rive  tings  for 
fastening  the 
blade  to  a 
handle.  There 
are  also  chisels 
and  small  awls 
in  bone  handles, 
beads,  and  small 
ornamental 
leaves,  and 
hatchets  of  the 
form  of  the  simplest  stone  hatchets,  with 
the  edge  hammered  out  and  broadened. 
Much  has  proved  the  existence  of  a  Copper 
Period  corresponding  to  this  description 
in  the  lake-dwelling  in  the  Mond  See  in 
Austria,  and  in  Hungary  the  remains  of  a 
Copper  Period  are  particularly  frequent. 
Parallel  cases  also  occur  in  many  other 
parts  of  Europe,  particularly,  as  Virchow 
has  proved,  in  the  Spanish  Peninsula,  and 
in  the  Stone  Age  graves  of  Cujavia  in 
Prussian  Poland.  These  are  the  more 
im]X)rtant  as  they  are  most  closely  related 
to  the  conditions  of  culture  discovered  in 
the  ancient  strata  of  Hissarlik-Troy. 
Further  unmistakable  analogies  occur  with 
very  ancient  finds  in  Cyprus,  and  probably 
even  with  the  oldest  remains  of  Baby- 
lonian culture  hitherto  known.  Here,  too, 
we  may  include  the  finds  of  copper  in  the 
Stone  Age  of  America. 

So  that  in  the  normal  and  comj^lete 
evolution  of  culture  there  seems  to  be  first 
a  stratum  of  copper  as  the  connecting  link 
between  the  Stone  and  Metal  Ages ;  and 


WHEN    HISTORY    WAS    DAWNING 


this  must  be  missing  in  those  regions  in 
which  progress  from  the  stone  to  the 
metal  culture  was  only  brought  about  at  a 
relatively  later  period  by  external  influ- 
ences. This  applies  not  only  to  all  modern 
races  in  an  age  of  stone,  who  obtained 
metal  in  recent  times  only 
The  Passing  ^j^j-o^gh  contact  with  European 

l^^^^  .        nations    who    had   been  living 
Stone  Age     .^    ^^^    j^.^^  p^^.-^^    f^^    ^^10X1- 

sands  of  years,  but,  curiously  enough,  also 
to  the  greater  part  of  Africa,  where  the  use 
of  iron  was  prevalent  at  a  prehistoric  period. 
Just  as  the  modern  Stone  races  passed 
straight  from  the  Stone  Age  into  the  most 
highly-developed  Iron  Age  of  the  most 
advanced  culture,  so  also  the  stone  stratum 
of  Central  and  South  Africa  is  immediately 
overlaid  by  a  stratum  of  iron  culture,which 
was  brought  there  in  ancient  times,  prob- 
ably direct  from  Egypt.  As  there  is  in 
Egypt  and  throughout  North  Africa  a 
regular  development  from  the  Copper- 
bronze  Period  to  the  complete  iron  culture, 
corresponding  to  the  progress  of  the 
metal  cultures  of  Europe  and  Asia,  the 
point  of  time  is  thus  chronologically 
fixed  at  which  this  important  element 
of  culture  was  transmitted  from  Europe 
to  the  blacks  of  Central  and  South  Africa. 


In  Western  Switzerland  the  transition 
period  of  copper  is  followed  without  a 
gap  in  the  development  by  the  Bronze 
Period  proper.  With  the  introduction  of 
bronze  all  the  conditions  of  life  were  more 
highly  developed  in  the  sense  of  increased 
culture.  With  better  tools  the  stations  of 
the  Bronze  Age  could  be  erected  at  a 
greater  distance  from  the  bank,  often  two 
hundred  to  three  hundred  yards  ;  the 
space  they  take  up  is  also  much  greater. 
The  piles  are  not  only  better  preserved, 
according  as  the  time  of  their  being  driven 
in  more  nearly  approaches  our  own,  but 
they  are  also  better  worked,  are  often 
square,  and  the  points  that  are  rammed  into 
the  lake-bottom  are  better  cut.  The  settle- 
ments of  the  Bronze  Age  often  cover  an 
area  of  several  hundred  square  yards, 
and  are  no  longer  comparatively  mean 
villages,  as  in  the  Stone 
Advancing  .    ^  .    ^^^    p-^g    settlements 

Civilisation  in  ^^  ^^^  Bronze  Age  are  well- 
Bronze  Age  organised  market  towns 
and  even  flourishing  small  cities,  where 
a  certain  luxury  already  prevails.  The 
products  of  their  industry  are  graced  by 
that  beauty  and  elegance  of  form  that 
only  an  advanced  civilisation  can  create. 
As  in  the  Stone  Age,  so  also  in  the  Bronze 


WEAPONS    USED    BY    MAN     IN    THE    PERIODS    OF    DAWNING    HISTORY 
Reproduced  chiefly  from  specimens  in  the  British  Museum. 


12 


177 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Age  of  Central  and  Northern  Europe, 
the  most  important  working-implement, 
which  was,  however,  also  used  as  a 
weapon,  was  the  axe,  or  celt.  The  most 
primitive  forms  of  axes,  like  the  above- 
mentioned  copper  axes,  still  resemble  the 
simple  stone  axes  :  like  these,  they  have 
no  special  contrivance  for  fastening  the 
handle.  In  more  developed  forms  of 
axes  such  contrivances  for  fastening  the 
handle  appear  first  in  the  form  of  slight 
flanges,  which  become  wider  and  wider  ; 
finally  they  develop  into  regular  wings, 
which,  by  curving  towards  one  another, 
develop  into  two  almost  closed  lateral 
semi-canals  on  the  upper  side  of  the  celt. 


used  for  making  their  weapons  and 
tools  in  the  periods  of  transition,  they 
still  imitate  the  old  forms  received  from 
their  forefathers.  Just  as  the  first  metal 
axes  of  copper  are  copies  of  the  stone 
axes,  so  also,  when  iron  first  became 
known,  were  weapons  made  of  this  metal 
which  corresponded  i-n  form  to  the  bronze 
weapons  that  had  hitherto  been  used. 

The  Bronze  Period  was  first  proved 
to  have  been  a  complete  form  of  culture 
in  the  North  of  Europe — in  North  Germany 
and  Scandinavia.  We  have  now  suc- 
ceeded in  establishing  the  fact  that  it 
was  a  preliminary  stage  of  the  Iron  Age,  in 
locally  original  development,  in  all  ancient 


THE  HILL  OF  TROY,   IN  WHICH   IS  RECORDED  A  WONDERFUL  STORY  OF  MAN'S  PROGRESS 
Seven  towns  of  Troy  were  built  upon  this  hill,  one  above  the  ruins  of  the  other,  the  earliest  dating  from  3000  B.C. ; 
and   the   brilliant   excavations  of  Dr.    Henry   Schliemann,   which   have   won    him   immortal    fame,   have    contributed 
more   to    our    knowledge    of   the    history   of   mankind    than    any  other  excavations  in   our  time,  as   on  this  site   is 
concentrated  a  continuous  record  of  man's  progress  from  the  late  Stone  Age  to  the  height  of  Greek  civilisation. 


In  the  hollow  celts  a  simple  socket  for 
the  handle  was  cast  in  the  making  ;  an 
additional  means  of  fastening  the  handle 
was  provided  in  a  loop,  which  also  occurs 
on  winged  celts.  Besides  the  celt,  or 
axe-blade,  broad  and  narrow  chisels  of 
bronze  occur  in  various  forms  for  working 
wood.  A  second  chief  type  of  instrument 
is  the  one-edged  bronze  knife  with  elegantly 
curved  back  and  a  handle  tongue. 

The  manner  in  which  iron  was  found  in 
the  lake-dwellings,  as  mentioned  above, 
shows  the  gradual  development  of  a  period 
of  transition  between  a  Bronze  and  an 
Iron  Age.  In  spite  of  the  difference 
in  the  material   which   the   lake-dwellers 

178 


centres  of  culture.  It  is  very  remarkable 
that  the  civihsed  states  of  the  New  World 
also  employed  only  copper  and  bronze 
as  working  metals.  Thus  the  Peruvians 
did  not  know  iron  any  more  than  the 
other  American  peoples  until  they  came 
in  contact  with  European  influences. 
Besides  copper  and  bronze  they  had  tin 
and  lead,  gold  and  silver.  The  Peruvian 
bronzes  contain  silver  to  the  extent  of 
five  to  ten  per  cent.  There  are  axes  or 
celts  of  bronze  similar  to  the  rudest  of  the 
first  European  beginnings  in  metal  cor- 
responding in  form  to  the  simple  stone  axe. 
Many  of  the  other  forms  of  weapons 
and  implements   famiUar  in  the  Bronze 


WHEN    i 


)RY    WAS    DAWNING 


Age  of  the  Old 
World  were  also 
made  of  bronze 
or  copper  in 
America  ;  semi- 
lunar knives  with 
a  handle  in  the 
middle,  lance- 
heads  and  arrow- 
heads, swords, 
war-clubs  like 
morning  stars, 
etc.  At  the  same 
time  weapons 
and  implements 
of  stone  still 
remained  in  use. 

In  the  Old 
World  progress 
beyond  bronze  is 
everywhere  due 
to  iron. 

One  place  has 
been    found  and 

most  completely  investigated  after  the 
method  of  palaeontological  research,  with 
all  the  help  afforded  by  archaeological  and 
historical  science,  where,  in  overlying  geo- 
logical strata,  the  evidences  have  been 
found  of  a  progressive  development  of  cul- 
ture from  the  end  of  the  Stone  Age  down  to 
the  brilliant  days  of  Graeco-Roman  history. 


A    WINE    MERCHANT'S    CELLAR    IN    ANCIENT    TROY 
Nine  colossal  earthen  jars  were  discovered  by  Dr.  Schliemann  in  the  depths  of  the  Temple  rf 
Athena.  They  had  evidently  belonged  to  some  wine  merchant's  cellar  in  the  pre-Hellenic  period. 

There    the    chronological    connection   has 
been  obtained,  not   only   for    the    metal 
periods,  but  also  for  the  end  of  the  Neolithic 
Period.   This  most  important  place  is  Troy, 
the  citadel-hih  of  Hissarlik,  by  the  excava- 
tion of  which  Henry  Schliemann  has  won 
immortal  fame.   Schliemann's  excavations, 
supplemented     and    completed    in    deci- 
sive    manner      by 
D  o  r  p  f  e  1  d  ,  have 
brought  about  the 
most        important 
advancement  of  the 
history  of  mankind 
that   our    age   can 
show. 

Virchow's  name 
is  inseparably 
associated  with 
Schliemann's. 
Furtwangler,  in  his 
account,  based  on 
jiersonal  observa- 
tion, of  the  results 
of  the  excavations 
at  Troy,  has  accom- 
plished the  great 
service  of  exactly 
determining  the 
chronological  con- 
nections of  the  pre- 
historic with  the 
historic  eras,  and 
thereby  linking  the 
former  to    history. 

179 


EXCAVATIONS    IN    THE    TEMPLE    OF    ATHENA    AT    TROY 

Dr.  Schliemann's  discoveries  in  the  ruins  of  this  temple  and  the  ruins  of  older  buildings 
beneath  it  were   among  the  richest  in  the  entire   annals   of  archaeological  research. 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


On  the  spot  on  which  tradition  placed 
Homeric  Troy  (says  Furtwiingler)  there  really 
has  stood  a  stately  citadel,  which  was  con- 
temporaneous with  the  goklenage  of  Mycenae, 
the  epoch  of  the  Agamemnon  of  legend,  was 
intimately  related  to  Mycenaean  culture,  and 
at  the  same  time  corresponds  most  exactly  to 
the  idea  of  Troy  underlying  the  old  epic. 

The  citadel-hill  of  Troy  terminates  a 
ridge  of  heights  stretching  westward  from 
Mount  Ida,  almost  parallel  to 
^^"'^'^  the     Hellespont,     and    slopes 

Oeum  steeply  into  the  Trojan  plain 
^^  '  or  the  valley  of  the  Scamander. 
The  natural  hill  itself  is  not  very  high,  but 
it  was  overlaid  by  enormous  layers  of  ruins 
of  buildings  and  walls,  whereby  it  has  been 
consideralily  increased  not  only  in  height, 
but  also  in  breadth.  Stratum  after  stratum 
lies  one  u})on  the  other  like  the  leaves  of 
a  bud,  so  that  the  history  of  the  habitation 
of  this  venerable  place  from  the  most 
ancient  times  can  be  read  from  these  strata 
which  have  been  o})ened  up  by  Schliemann 
and  Dorpfeld,  as  from  the  leaves  of  a  book. 
The  original  ground  of  the  hill-plateau  now 
lies  some  sixty  feet  above  the  plain,  but  the 
latter  may  have  been  raised  something  like 
sixteen  to  twenty  feet  by  alluvial  deposits 
since  the  Trojan  War.  The  whole  stratum 
of  ruins  lying  on  the  original  ground  of  the 
hill,  which  Schliemann  opened  up,  amounts 
to  about  fifty-two  and  a  half  feet.  Schlie- 
mann distinguished  seven  or  eight  different 
layers  or  strata,  corresponding  to  as  many 
towns  which  were  successively  built  on 
this  hill,  one  on  the  ruins  of  the  other. 

The  lowest  stratum,  lying  immediately 
on  the  original  ground,  belongs  accordingly 
to  the  oldest,  or  first  town,  on  the  citadel- 
hill  of  Troy.    Furtwangler  says  : 

By  moderate  computation  this  settle- 
ment must  belong  to  the  first  half  of  the 
third  millennium  before  Christ,  bul?  it  may 
very  well  date  back  even  to  the  fourth 
millennium.  The  inhabitants  already  used 
copper  implements  in  addition  to  stone  ones. 
Their  whole  culture  is  most  closely  connected 
with  that  which  prevailed  in  Central  Europe 
during  the  Copper  Period.  Clay 
The  First  vessels  of  the  Copper  Period  from 
Town  Lake    Mond,     in  Austria,    agree 

of  Troy  completely  with  those  of  the  first 

Trojan  town.  Troy  represents 
only  an  offshoot  of  Central  European  cul- 
ture, and  its  inhabitants  were  in  all  prob- 
ability of  European  origin. 

We  have  already  learned  that  the  Copper 
Period  is  the  end  of  the  Neolithic  Period 
and  the  beginning  of  the  Metal  Age. 
In  the  first  Trojan  town  there  is  still 
extraordinarily  little  metal  used,  the  axes, 

i8o 


hatchets,  knives,  and  saws  still  being 
of  stone,  of  the  familiar  Central  European 
types,  and  of  the  same  materials,  among 
which  nephrite  is  particularly  frequent. 
Other  materials  are  serpentine,  diorite, 
porphyry,  hematite,  flint,  etc. 

The  forms  of  these  implements  corre- 
spond entirely  to  those  of  the  later  Stone 
Age  of  Europe.  The  character  of  the 
ceramics  also  conforms  in  many  respects, 
according  to  Virchow,  to  that  of  the  Euro- 
pean Stone  Age  ;  and  the  Stone  Age  finds 
at  Butmir,  in  Bosnia,  and  similar  ones  in 
Transylvania  seem  especially  to  offer  close 
analogies.  It  would  be  a  highly  important 
step  toward  connecting  history  with  the 
Neolithic  Period  if  the  first  town  could  be 
even  more  closely  investigated,  and  perhaps 
more  sharply  divided  from  that  second 
stratum  which  lies  between  it  and  the 
stratum  described  by  Schliemann  as  the 
second  or  burnt  city,  and  which  Schlie- 
mann afterward  separated  into  two  strata, 
corresponding  to  two  towns.  Perhaps  the 
metal  comes  only  from  the  second  or 
higher  stratum  under  the  burnt  city.  In 
that  case  the  oldest  would  belong  purely 
to  the  Stone  Age.  The  ceramics 

^     "?      would     seem     to     contradict 

„  *"* ,  °,  this.  Furtwangler  continues  : 
Troy  s  ulory  " 

High  above  the  first  town,  a 
deep  layer  of  debris,  is  the  level  surface  of 
the  second  town,  which  must  at  least  be 
dated  back  to  the  second  half  of  the  third 
millennium  before  Christ.  It  was  the  first 
period  of  Troy's  glory.  Mighty  walls  protected 
the  citadel.  Three  different  building  periods 
may  be  distinguished.  The  walls  were  brought 
out  a  long  way  and  strengthened,  and 
magnificent  new  gates  were  built.  During  the 
third  period  of  this  second  city  a  prince, 
fond  of  splendour,  had  the  old  narrow  gate- 
way replaced  by  magnificent  propylaea  and 
a  large  hall-erection  with  a  vestibule.  A 
great  conflagration  destroyed  his  citadel. 
A  treasure  was  found  by  Schliemann — he 
called  it  Priam's  treasure — in  the  upper  part 
of  the  citadel  wall,  which  was  made  of  straw 
bricks.  The  tools  of  the  second  city  are  still 
partly  of  stone,  but  also  partly  of  bronze,  so 
that  they  already  belong  to  the  Bronze  Age. 

The  general  character  of  culture  is, 
according  to  Furtwangler,  still  essentially 
Central  European.  And  yet  many  an  indi- 
viduality has  developed,  and  the  influence 
of  Babylonian  culture  is  everywhere 
apparent,  although  it  does  not  go  very  deep. 
To  this  influence  our  authority  chiefly 
attributes  the  occurrence  of  a  few  pots 
turned  on  the  wheel,  especially  flat  dishes  ; 
for    the    potter's    wheel    was    still    quite 


THE   EXCAVATIONS    AT  T.OV  :     --^-^'-^    -"^T-^.  Z.'"::,:^^:^"!. 


k™5iiFffi&"^^£si^'^-^^^ 


HISTORY    OF    THE     WORLD 


unknown  at  that  time  in  Europe,  and  even 
at  a  post  so  far  advanced  toward  the  East 
as  Cyprus,  while  in  Egypt  and  Babylonia 
it  had  been  in  use  from  the  earliest  times. 
In  this  period  also  Troy  inclines  more  to 
Central  Europe  as  its  centre  of  gravity, 
but  remains  far  behind  the  peculiar 
development  that  bronze  work  attained 
there  ;  in  the  metal  tools  no  advance  is 
made  on  the  forms  of  the  Copper 
Period.  Into  any  close  relation 
with  Cyprus  it  does  not  come  ; 
only  the  basis  of  their  culture 
is  common  to  both.  But  this  basis  had  a 
wide  range,  relics  from  German  districts 
being  often  more  closely  related  to  the 
Trojan  ones  than  are  those  from  Cyprus. 

The  brilliant  period  of  the  second  city- 
is  followed  by  a  long  period  of  decline  for 
Troy.  Ruins  are  piled  upon  ruins,  walls 
rise  upon  walls,  but  each  poorer  than  the 
others  ;  no  new  citadel  walls,  no  gates,  no 
palaces  belong  to  this  period,  in  which  three 


The  Early 
Culture 
of    Troy 


TROY; 

The  top  of  the  tower  is  z6  ft 
foundation  is  on  the  rock  46  ft. 

182 


THE   GREAT  TOWER   OF   ILIUM 

below   the   surface   of    the   hill.       The 
deep ;  the  height  of  the  tower  is  20  ft. 


strata — the  third,  fourth,  and  fifth  towns — 
are  distinguished.  The  first  half  of  the  second 
millennium  before  Christ  must  at  least  be 
regarded  as  the  time  of  this  deposit.  The  in- 
habitants evidently  remained  the  same,  and 
their  culture  is  that  of  the  second  city.  But 
no  progress  was  made  ;  nothing  but  stagna- 
tion ;  the  same  forms  of  vessels  continue  to 
be  made,  the  same  decorated  whorls. 
Naturally,  no  active  intercourse  with  abroad 
could  develop  in  this  period.  And  yet  this 
was  the  time  when  an  active  civilised  life 
began  to  develop  on  the  islands  of  the  ^gean 
Sea  and  on  the  east  coast  of  Greece,  which 
was  to  bloom  in  all  its  splendour  in  the 
following  period.  To  this  time  the  finds  at 
Thera  belong,  where  the  pottery,  all  turned 
on  the  wheel,  is  already  painted  with  a  so- 
called  varnish  colour  which  shines  like  metal, 
and  in  which  plants,  flowers,  and  animals  are 
treated  in  quite  a  new  and  promising  natural- 
istic style  hitherto  unheard  of  in  Europe. 
In  Cyprus,  too,  the  decoration  of  pottery 
developed  exceedingly  in  wealth  and  variety 
in  this  period  of  the  Bronze  Age.  Troy,  on 
the  other  hand,  is  poor  and  degenerate. 

But  a  new  period  of  prospe- 
rity arrived  for  Troy,  too  ; 
this  is  the  sixth  town.  Rich 
and  powerful  princes  again 
ruled  in  this  citadel.  They  en- 
larged it  far  beyond  its  former 
compass.  They  built  strong 
new  walls — the  old  ones  had 
long  since  sunk  in  ruins — 
not  of  small  stones  and  straw 
bricks  as  before,  but  of  large, 
smooth  blocks,  and  gates  and 
turrets.  They  did  not  have 
the  sloping  mound  of  ruins 
levelled,  as  the  lords  .of  the 
second  city  had  done  ;  they 
let  the  new  buildings  rise  in 
terraces,  on  the  ruins  of  the 
old  ;  stately  mansions  with 
wide,  deep  halls,  covered  the 
acropolis.  Constant  inter- 
course existed  with  the  princes 
of  Greece,  who  at  that  time — 
the  second  half  of  the  second 
millennium  before  Christ — 
built  their  citadels  with 
Cyclopean  walls.  The  Trojans 
employed  the  same  peculiar, 
constantly-recurring  small 
projections  in  their  walls  that 
we  find  in  a  Mycenaean  town 
on  Lake  Copais  in  Boeotia. 
And,  above  all,  the  Trojans 
now  provided  themselves  with 
those  beautiful  vessels  pain- 
ted with  shining  colour  that 
characteri.se  Mycenaean  cul- 
ture in  Greece,  and  whose 
natural  style  had  so  wonder- 
fully developed  there  on  the 
basis  of  the  attempts  that  we 
found  at  Thera.  In  Troy  these 


THE  TREASURE  OF  PRIAM.  KING  OF  TROY  :  A  COLLECTION  REVEALED  BY  THE  EXCAVATIONS 


This    remarkable    collection    of   regal  treasure    comprises    the    key  of   ^^f,  treasure-housejat  top  of   pj^^^ 
bronze  are  displayed  beneath,    and    on  the  floor    are  a  vessel,    a  cauldron    and    a    shield,   all    maae    oi    copper 


things  caused  some  imitation,  but  the  results 
remained  far  behind  the  originals.  The  living, 
imaginative  conception  of  the  natural  was 
closed  to  the  Trojan  ;  the  home-made  pottery 
kept,  on  the  whole,  to  its  unpainted  vessels, 
although  these  were  now  almost  entirely- 
made  on  the  wheel. 

Yet  what  chiefly  interests  us  is.  the  his- 
torical. The  sixth  town,  too,  was  suddenly 
given  up,  destroyed,  and  burnt.  What  follows 
it    are    again    only    poor   settlements.      Its 


destruction  must  have  taken  place  about 
the  end  of  the  Mvcena^an  epoch  of  culture. 
The  seventh  town,' which  is  built  immediately 
on  the  ruins  of  the  sixth, '  shows,  already, 
other  and  later  culture.  It  had  long  been 
suspected  that  a  historical  kernel  was  con- 
cealed in  the  legend  of  Troy— now  _  we 
have  the  monumental  confirmation.  There 
really  was  a  Troy,  which  was  strong  and 
great  at  the  same  time  as  the  rulers  of 
Mycenae,    rich  in   gold    and    treasure,    held 

183 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


sway  in  Greece.  And  that  Troy  was  des- 
troyed— we  may  now  safely  affirm,  from 
this  a?;rcement  between  reUcs  and  legend — by 
Greek  princes  of  the  Mycenaean  epoch,  whom 
the  legend  calls  Agamemnon  and  his  men. 

The  seventh  and  eighth  towns,  built 
soon  after  the  destruction  of  the  sixth, 
show  an  interruption  in  the  intercourse 
with  Greece.  There  the  Mycenaean  period 
was  broken  by  the  displacement  of  peoples 
known  as  the  Doric  migration,  and  that 
rich  civilised  life  was  replaced  by  a  relapse 
into  the  semi-barbaric  conditions  of  the 
North.  In  Troy,  too,  we  perceive  a  period 
of  decline,  "  a  relapse  into  a  stage  long 
since  past  ;  black  hand-made  vessels, 
which  in  their  form  and  decoration  are 
strikingly  like  the  home-made  pots  usual 
in  Italy,  especially  Etruria  and  Latium, 
in  the  first  part  of  the  first  millennium 
before  Christ."  Finally,  the  seventh  town 
also  furnishes  inferiorimported  Greek  vases 
with  painting,  though  coming  not  from 
Grace  itself,  but  from  the  coast  of  Asia 


Minor,  where  Greeks  had  settled  in  connec- 
tion with  the  Doric  migration.  "  The 
JEolic  colonisation  of  Troas  brought 
Ilium  no  fresh  prosperity.  Other  places 
rose,  Troy  remained  a  miserable  village. 
In  the  Hellenistic  period  the  sky  clears 
over  Troy.  What  Alexander  intended, 
Lysimachus  carried  out  ;  he  restores 
Ilium  to  the  place  of  a  real  city  with 
new  walls,  and  erects  a  magnificent 
temple  to  Athene  on  the  top  of  the  acro- 
polis. .  .  .  Yet  artistic  creation  came 
to  no  real  perfection.  It  was  only  when  the 
great  men  of  Rome,  mindful  of  their 
Trojan  ancestors,  began  to  interest  them- 
selves in  the  place,  that  new  life  bloomed 
on  Troy's  ruins." 

Thus  the  geological  -  archaeological 
method  relates  history,  merely  relying 
upon  the  monuments  of  the  soil,  without 
requiring  written  evidences.  Pre-history 
has  here  attained  its  end  ;  it  has  become 
history.  Johannes  Ranke 


A    VIEW    SHOWING    THE    REMAI^KABLE    CHARACTER    *jx      liiL    UXc^v/nWoNS    AT    TROY 
S'ome   idea   of   the   enormous    work     involved    in   unearthing   ancient   Troy   will   be   gathered   from   the    fact,    made 
rlcar    in    this    view,    that    the    groiuid-level    before    excavating    was     above    the    height   of    these    buildings.      A 
deep    trench   was    cut,  as    shown     in     the     illustration,    through   the    whole    hill    of   Hissarlik,    the    citadel    town. 


184 


THE    GREAT    STEPS    IN    AAN'S 

DEVELOPAENT 

BY    PROFESSOR    JOSEPH    KOHLER 


THE    MATERIAL    PROGRESS    OF    MANKIND 


HTHE  opinion  that  our  own  circumstances 
•'•  and  affairs  are  the  only  standard  for 
judging  universal  history  has  long  been 
obsolete.  Our  day,  with  its  conceptions, 
beliefs,  hopes,  and  endeavours,  is  but  a 
tiny  portion  of  the  past  ;  for  thousands  of 
years  ])eoples  have  existed  who  have  lived 
in  other  intellectual  spheres  than  ours, 
who  have  pursued  other  ideals. 

The  study  of  history  does  not  consist  in 
an  examination  of  the  past  projected,  as  it 
were,  into  the  present ;  it  is  the  study  of  the 
j)ast  considered  as  a  i)art  of  the  constant 
coming  and  going  of  men.  And  in  order  to 
become  qualified  as  historians  we  must  first 
of  all  attain  a  point  of  view  from  which  we 
may,  independently  of  time,  behold  history 
with  all  its  great  events  file  by  ;  as  though 
we  were  men  who  had  ascended  to  some 
elevation  in  the  universe  from  which  they 
could  look  down  upon  the  whole  earth 
lying     as     a     unity  ... 

before  them.  This 
is  rendered  possible 
through  the  power 
of  abstraction  gained 
from  a  study  of  his- 
tory ;  it  enables  us, 
on  the  one  hand,  to 
ada]it  ourselves  to 
strange  times  and 
beliefs,  and,  on  the 
other,  to  look  upon 
our  own  day —  all 
time  to  its  contem- 
porary men — olijct - 
tivelv,  as  a  mere  houi 
of  the  ages  of  human 
development.  We 
must  learn  to  escap(» 
from  the  present,  to 
withdraw  oursehc  > 
from  that  which  \\i 
may  call  the  tj'rannx 
of  our  own  time. 

From     universal 
history  we  obtain  a 


picture  of  the  development  of  humanity — 
that  is,  the  development  of  the  various 
active  germs  or  principles  inherent  in 
man.  By  these  are  meant  the  active 
principles  innate  in  mankind  in  the 
aggregate,  in  contradistinction  to  those 
which  may  exist  in  single  individuals 
or  in  single  races. 

The  result  of  development  is  called 
"  civilisation  " — the  state  of  intellectual 
being,  and  of  outward,  material  life, 
attained  by  a  people  through  evolution. 
Although  spiritual  and  material  culture 
flow  into  each  other,  they  may  be  separated 
to  this  extent  :  as  a  physical  being 
endowed  with  senses,  man  endeavours  td 
obtain  satisfaction  of  his  needs,  and  strives 
for  a  position  in  relation  to  his  environ- 
ment corresponding  with  the  efforts  he  has 
made   to   obtain   welfare  ;     as   a   feeling, 


inquiring,     spiritual     1 


THE    PRIMITIVE    ART    OF    WEAVING 

The  art  of  weaving  arose  from  plaiting,  and  soon 
developed  to  perfection,  the  American  Indians  and  most 
primitive  peoples  of  our  own  day  being  skilled  weavers. 


leing  he  contains 
within  him  an  ever- 
present  desire  to  fuse 
the  multitude  of 
sejiarate  impressions 
he  receives  into  unity, 
and  to  struggle  for- 
ward until  he  arrives 
at  a  conception  of  the 
world  and  of  life. 

"  Material  civilisa- 
tion "  is  the  mode  of 
life  through  which 
the  obstacles  opposed 
to  humanity  may 
l)e  overcome.  By 
the  surmounting  of 
obstacles  is  meant 
the  conqu  ering  of 
enemies,  particularly 
of  hostile  animals, 
the  obtaining  ol 
means  for  the  preser- 
vation of  existence, 
and  the  employing  of 
these  means  for  the 
increase     of     bodily 

185 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLI 


,     -^                            1 

B.C.5000  _ 

- 

- 

_     IJuildingof  the  Pyramids. 

_     Karliest     monuments     to 

B.C  4500  I 

_      kings  in  Habylonia. 

B.C.4OO0I 

_   ki.se    of    Semitic    Baljy- 

_ 

z 

Ionian  kingdoms. 

- 

'.< 

- 

~ 

~ 

- 

B.C.3500  __ 

■ .    a 

fcR-O 

(   li;dda;an  Astronomy. 

~ 

- 

Kj      "^ 

- 

- 

■r      ^  ■ 

- 

B.C.300(l_ 

^^>         lu 

" 

H 

- 

00  ^  •- 

B.C.2300_ 

0  z 

_ 

- 

^m-  '        ^ 

- 

- 

H^       0 

Khammurabai. 

B.C.2000_ 

■'        ^        2  '^ 

Assyrian  records. 

- 

^    <: 

- 

" 

>       I 

- 

0       5 

' 

B.C.I5O0I 

UJ 

_  Hebraic  Monotheism. 

Zoroaster. 

- 

-^pHj 

^^"Igean  Cuhure. 

B.C.IOOoI 

_  Hellenic  Culture. 

- 

g    < 

- 

: 

Z    "^ 

- 

_ 

<    ^ 

'  Thales. 

B.C  000_ 

_  r.uddha.     Confucius. 

- 

_  -Socrates. 

_ 

°    <      . 

.    Plato.     Aristotle. 

- 

.   Stoics  and  Epicureans. 

AD.    I 

0    W 

- 

- 

0    00 

.  ChristiaiMty. 

- 

111    < 

_ 

- 

QC     -i 

.    .\eo-platonists. 

AD. 500  _ 

0  ^0 

_St.  .Augustine. 

DARK 

_  Mohammed. 

ACES 

Johannes  Scotus. 

AD  1000  J 

_  Avicenna. 

.  Scholasticism 

.  .\nselm.     .\belard. 

- 

f4^D\^VALci 

- 

SCHetASTIC  Eftl 

.  Aquinas.     R.  Bacon. 
.  Wiclif. 

AD.ISOOJ 

"1 

-Copernicus.      Luther. 

- 

MOD£(-?NOR 

.   !■  lancis  liacon.     Newton. 

- 

SCIENTIFIC 

.  Kant.     Steam. 

ADlOOO_ 

ERA 

_l>arwin.      1' leclricity 

1 

OUR    OWN    DAY     COMPARED    WITH    THE 
HISTORIC     PAST 
Our  day,  with  its  conceptions,  beliefs,  hopes,  and  endea- 
vours, is  but  a  tiny  portion  of  the  past ;  for  thousands  of 
years  peoples  have  existed  who  have  lived  in  other  intel- 
lectual spheres  than  ours,  who  have  pursued  other  ideals. 

186 


welfare.  In  respect  of  material  civilisa- 
tion man  passes  through  stages  that 
differ  widely  from  one  another,  that  vary 
according  to  the  manner  in  which  the 
necessities  for  existence  are  obtained, 
and  according  to  the  way  in  which  enemies 
are  withstood  for  the  safeguarding  of  life, 
welfare,  and  acquisitions  already  gained. 
Races  are  spoken  of  as  supporting  them- 
selves by  the  chase  and  fishing,  or  by  cattle- 
breeding  and  farming,  according  to 
whether  they  are  accustomed  to  derive 
subsistence  directly  from  "  nature  un- 
adorned," or  by  means  of  the  cultivation 
and  utilisation  of  natural  products. 

No  sharp  line  of  distinction,  however, 
may  be  drawn.  It  is  inadmissible  to 
speak  of  races  as  supporting  themselves 
solely  by  hunting  and  fishing,  for  the 
very  same  peoples  feed  on  products  of  the 
soil  wherever  they  are  found  and  recog- 
nised as  means  of  subsistence.  They 
live,  it  is  true,  upon  flesh  and  fish,  but  also 
upon  roots  and  the  fruit  of  wild  trees. 
While  in  this  state  of  civilisation,  man 
avails  himself  only  of  that  which  Nature 
places  before  him ;  he  neither  adapts 
Nature  to  his  desire,  to  his  needs,  or  to  his 
manner  of  living,  nor  understands  how  to 
do  it.  He  can  make  no  further  use  of 
Nature  than  to  acquire  a  knowledge  of  the 
sources  of  supply,  of  how  to  seize  time  and 
opportunity,  and  to  overcome  the  obstacles 
of  life  in  his  own  territory.  He  ascertains 
the  haunts  of  game,  discovers  how  to 
obtain  fish,  explores  for  wild  honey  or 
edible  roots,  learns  to  climb  the  tallest 
trees  and  to  let  himself  down  into  the 
deepest  caves  ;  but  he  lacks  the  ability  to 
cultivate  Nature,  to  cause  her  to  produce 
according  to  his  will. 

Gradually  the  one  phase  amalgamates 
with  the  other.  It  is  not  seldom  that 
hunting  tribes  have  small  tracts  of  land 
on  which  they  raise  a  few  edible  plants. 
Observation  of  Nature  teaches  them  that 
germs  develop  from  fallen  seeds,  and 
leads  of  itself  to  the  idea  that  it  is  not  best 
to  allow  plants  to  grow  up  wild,  and  that 
it  would  be  expedient  to  clear  the  surround- 
ing ground  for  their  better  growth.  And 
when  this  stage  is  reached,  the  next  step — 
not  to  allow  seeds  to  spring  up  by  chance, 
but  to  place  them  in  the  soil  one's  self — 
is  not  very  far  off ;  and  thus  the  mere 
.  acquisition  of  Nature's  raw  vegetable  pro- 
ducts gives  place  to  agriculture.  Often 
enough  we  observe  instances  of  the  men  of 
a  group  carrying  on  hunting  operations, 


THE    C  lEAT    Si 


IN    MAN'S    DEVELOPMENT 


ing  of  weapons  and  of  contri- 
vances used  for  the  capture 
of  animals  lay  within  the 
province  of  the  men. 

The  discovery  of  how  to 
produce  fire  by  artificial 
mean?,  independently 
effected  in  all  parts  of  the 
world — as  was  also  the 
discovery  of  the  art  of 
navigation — was  of  the 
greatest  importance  for 
the  entire  future.  Fire  was 
first  a  result  of  chance. 

When  lightning  set  a  por- 
tion of  the  forest  in  flames, 
and  caused  a  multitude  of 


while  the  women 
are  not  only  occu- 
pied with  their 
domestic  employ- 
ments, but  also  till 
the  soil  ;  thus  the 
men  are  hunters 
and  fishers,  and 
the  women  are 
agriculturists.  Do- 
mestic work  led 
the  latter  to  take 
up  the  cultivation 
of  plants,  even  as 
it  led  them  to  the 
other  light  femi- 
nine handicrafts  ; 
while    the    repair- 


animals  or  fruits  to  be 
roasted,  men  put  it  to 
practical  use.  They  re- 
cognised the  advantage 
that  fire  gave  them  and 
sought  to  preserve  it. 
The  retention  of  the  fire 
which  had  been  sent 
down  from  heaven  be- 
came one  of  the  most 
weighty  and  significant 
of  functions.  Man 
learned  how  to  keep 
wood  -  fibres  smoulder- 
ing, and  how  to  blow 
them  into  flame  at  will ; 
he  also  learned  that  it 

MANKINDS     PROGRESS    IN     HABITS    OF    DRESS  possible    tO    COUVeV 

This  series  of  typical  pictures  is  intended  roughly  to  illustrate  the  upward  progress  of  "^                .i               j.       j.-    r  + 

man  from  the  almost  nude  savage  to  the  neatly  and  conveniently  dressed  gentleman  nrC,  Or    the    pOtentiaJlty 

ofto-day.    The  Elizabethan  dandy  is,  of  course,  as  fully  dressed  as  man  can  be,  and  is  r          r               alnnp-       with 

introduced  only  as  indicating  the  great  change  of  sartorial  ideas  in  modern  times.  ^'-        Uic,       aii.;ii5       wini 

1S7 


HISTORY    OF    THE     WORLD 


him  in  his  wanderings.  But  even  then 
success  was  uncertain  until  a  hicky 
chance  led  him  to  discover  how  to  pro- 
duce flames  at  will,  by  rubbing  two 
sticks  together  or  by  twirling  one  against 
the  other.  These  actions  were  originally 
performed  for  other  purposes — to  bore 
holes  in  a  piece  of  wood,  or  to  rub  it  into 
fibres  ;  finally,  one  or  the  other  was  carried 
out  with  such  vigour  that  a  filament  began 
to  burn,  and  the  discovery  was  made. 
Sparks  from  flint  must  have  suggested  a 
second  method  of  kindling  a  fire  ;  certainly 
the  art  of  igniting  soft  filaments  of  wood 
by  means  of  a  spark — thus  enabling  the 
very  smallest  source  of  combustion  to  be 
■  used  for  human  purposes — was  known  to 
man  in  the  earliest  times.   The  obvious 


ESQUIMAU     MAKING    FIRE    BY    FRICTION 

results  of  the  use  of  fire  are  means  of 
obtaining  warmth  and  of  cooking  food. 

Self-defence  had  already  led  to  the  use 
of  weapons,  and,  at  the  same  time,  the 
contrivances  for  hunting  and  fishing  must 
have  become  more  and  more  perfect. 
A  very  low  degree  of  civilisation  is 
that  of  races  unacquainted  with  the  bow 
and  arrow,  and  familiar  with  club  or 
boomerang  only — who  know  how  to  make 
use  merely  of  the  weight  of  a  substance, 
or,  as  in  the  case  of  the  boomerang,  of  a 
peculiar  means  of  imparting  motion. 

The  time  previous  to  the  discovery  of 
the  art  of  working  in  metal  was  the  Age 
of  Stone.  It  was  a  natural  transition 
period  during  which  men  began  to  learn 
to  make  use  of  the  malleable  metals,  which 
could  be  hammered  and  beaten  into 
various   shapes,    and    finally   discovered 

i88 


AN     INGENIOUS    INDIAN    FIRE    DRILL 

how  to  work  in  iron.  Iron,  by  being 
placed  in  the  fire,  brought  to  a  white 
heat,  and  smelted,  was  rendered  capable 
of  being  put  to  such  uses  as  were  impos- 
sible in  the  case  of  brittle  materials — 
bone  or  stone,  for  example.  Many  races 
never  acquired  the  art  of  working  even  in 
the  softer  metals,  and  procured  metallic 
implements  from  other  peoples.  The 
great  importance  of  metal-working  is 
borne  out  by  the  fact  that  the  position 
of  the  smith,  even  in  legendary  times, 
has  been  of  the  utmost  significance.  The 
Ages  of  Stone  and  of  Metal  belong  to  the 
most  important  stages  of  civilisation. 


THE    GAUCHO'S   WAY   OF    GETTING 


THE    GREAT    STEPS    IN    MAN'S    DEVELOPMENT 


Having  made  himself  weapons,  man  did 
not  employ  them  in  fights  with  animals 
only  ;  he  also  used  them  on  his  fellow-men, 
and  at  the  same  time  arose  the  necessity 
for  protective  coverings — that  is,  the  need 
for  a  means  of  neutralising  the  effect  of 
weapons  on  the  body.  Thus  followed  the 
invention  of  the  shield  as  a  portable 
shelter,  of  the  coat  of  mail  and  of  the 
helmet,  and  of  armour  in  general  in  all  its 
different  forms  and  varieties. 

Together     with     weapons,     utensils     are 
characteristic  of  material  culture.     Utensils 
are  implements  used  in   the   arts  of  peace, 
domestic  and  industrial ;    they  are  instru- 
ments which    enable    us    to    increase    our 
power  over  Nature.    Some  utensils  have 
undergone  the  same  transformations  as 
have  weapons  ;    others  have  their  own 
independent  history.    Just  as  the  edges 
of  shells  served  as  patterns  for  knife- 
blades,  so  did  hollow  stones, 
the  shells  of  crustaceans  or 


„      _  rnderwood  &  Underwood 

THE    WONDERFUL    ADVANCE    IN    AGRICULTURE 
These  pictures  present  a  striking  contrast :  the  sullen  clod  with  his  primitive 


Mansell 

THE   MAN  WITH    THE   HOE 
From  the  painting  by  Millet 

of  tortoises,  become  models  for 
dishes  and  basins.  From  the 
discovery  of  the  impervious- 
ness  of  dried  earth,  the 
potter's  art  developed  ;  it  be- 
came possible  to  mould  clay 
into  desired  shapes  while 
moist,  and  then,  when  dry,  to 
employ  it  in  its  new  form  as  a 
vessel  for  holding  liquids  ;  for 
that  which  has  always  been 
of  the  greatest  importance  in 
the  making  of  utensils  has 
been  the  taking  advantage  of 
two  opposite  characteristics 
displayed  by  a  material  dur- 
ing the  different  stages  of 
its  manufacture — plasticity, 
which  admits  of  its  first  being 
moulded  into  various  forms, 
and  another  qualit}',  which 
causes  it  afterward  to  stiffen 
into  solidity  and  strength. 

A  further  acqu  sition  was 
the  art  of  braiding  and  plait- 
ing, the  joining  together  of 
flexible  materials  in  such  a 
way  that  they  held  together 
by  force  of  friction  alone. 
Thus  coherent,  durable  fabrics 
may  be  produced,  and  by 
joining  together  small  parts 
into  an  aggregate    it    is  also 


hoe,  and  the  great  Canadian  reaper  drawn  by  thirty  horses,  both  in  use  to-day.    pOSSible     tO     give      a      definite 

189 


The  way  in  which  man  has  protected  him- 
self against  his  foes  in  battle,  and  the 
gradual  progress  and  decline  of  such 
methods,  is  shown  in  these  pictures.  The 
first  is  from  the  monuments  of  Nineveh,  and 


shows  the  earliest  form  of  chain  mail.  In 
the  second  we  see  the  armour  of  the  Roman 
legionary,  while  the  third  shows  the  heavy 
accoutrement  of  a  mediaeval  warrior.  A 
helmet  of  the  same  period  is  also  shown. 


Growth  of 
the  Textile 
Arts 


MAN'S  METAL  DRESS  :  THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF  ARMOUR  FROM  AN'CIENT  TO  MEDIAEVAL  TIMES 

from  injury  the  idea  of  sledges  develops. 
Things  that  are  round  enough  are  rolled 
to  their  destinations  ;  this  leads  to  the 
invention  of  rollers  and  wheels,  materials 
of  required  form  being  brought  into 
combination  with  rudimentary  agents  of 
circular  motion,  and  thus,  through  a 
rotary,  a  horizontal  movement  is  obtained  ; 
and  so  the  force  of  gravity  is  made  use  of, 
consistency  of  motion  procured,  and  the 
hindering  effect  of  friction  overcome  to 
the  greatest  possible  degree. 

Means  for  carrying  inanimate  objects 
once  invented,  it  is  not  long  before  they 
are  put  to  use  for  the  conveyance  of  man 
himself ;  thus  methods  for  the  trans- 
portation of  human  beings  are  discovered 
in  the  same  manner  as  the  means  for  the 
carriage  of  goods. 

In    primitive    times    transportation  by 

water  is  employed  to  a  far  greater  extent 

than  by  land.     Man  learns  how  to  swim 

in  the  same  way  as  other  animals  do,  by 

discovering  how  to  repress  his  struggles, 

transforming  them  into  definite,  regular 

movements.          The      sight       of 

objects  afloat  must,  through  un- 

con.scious     analysis  —  experience 

— have    taught    men    to    make 

water-tight     structures     for    the 

conveyance    of   goods   upon   water,   and, 

later,  for  the  use  of  man  himself.     The  pole 

by  which  the  first  raft  was  pushed  along 

developed  into  the  rudder.     Kayaks  and 

canoes  were  built  of  wood,  of  bark,  and 


form  to  the  whole  and  to  adapt  it  to 
various  uses.  The  quality  of  adaptability 
is  especially  developed  in  the  products  of 
plaiting,  but  the  quality  of  imperviousness 
is  lacking.  Wickerwork  was  used  not  only 
in  the  form  of  baskets,  but  also  in  other 
shapes,  as  means  for  protection 
and  .shelter,  as  material  for 
sails,  as  well  as  for  tying  and 
binding.  The  art  of  weaving 
arises  from  plaiting,  and  along  with  it  come 
methods  for  spinning  thread.  It  thus 
becomes  possible  to  make  an  immense 
number  of  different  useful  articles  out  of 
shapeless  vegetable  material.  Fibres  are 
rendered  more  durable  by  being  bound 
together,  and  textures  formed  from 
threads  are  adapted  to  the  most  various 
uses  of  life.  This  has  an  influence  on  the 
development  of  weapons  also  :  bow- 
strings, slings,  and  lassos  presuppose  a 
rudimentary  knowledge,  at  least,  of  the 
textile  arts  ;  and  as  knowledge  increases, 
so  are  the  products  improved  in  turn. 

Means  for  conveyance  arc  also  invented, 
that  difficulties  arising  from  distance  may 
be  overcome.  At  first  men  carry  burdens 
upon  their  backs,  heads,  or  shoulders,  or 
in  the  hand,  placing  whatever  they  wish 
to  transport  in  a  utensil — a  basket  or  a 
piece  of  cloth — thus  producing  a  coherent 
whole  ;  later,  in  order  to  render  convey- 
ance still  more  convenient,  handles  are 
invented.  Objects  are  dragged  along  the 
ground,  and  from  an  effort  to  save  them 
I  go 


Man's 

First 

Boats 

light. 


The  invention  of  gunpowder  and  fire- 
arms rendered  the  protection  of  armour 
useless,  and  by  the  sixteenth  century  it 
had  been  greatly  modified.  The  first  of 
these  pictures  shows  the  slight   armour 


worn  by  James  II.  The  second  is  a  suit 
of  Japanese  armour,  discarded  in  our 
own  time ;  while  the  last  is  a  portrait 
of  a  present  day  Life-guardsman,  whose 
cuirass  is  more  ornamental  than  useful. 


MAN'S    METAL    DRESS:   THE    GRADUAL    MODIFICATION    OF    ARMOUR    IN    MODERN    TIMES 


of  hides.  In  this  connection,  moreover, 
an  epoch-marking  invention  was  that  of 
cloths  in  which  to  catch  the  wind — sails  ; 
and  this,  too,  was  a  result  of  observation 
and  experience.  Man  had  known  the 
effect  of  the  wind  upon  fluttering  cloth, 
to  his  loss,  long  enough  before  he  hit 
upon  the  idea  of  employing  it  to  his 
advantage.  Finally  he  learned  that  by 
adjusting  the  sails  he  might  make  use  of 
winds  blowing  from  any  direction. 

Habitations  are  structures  built  in  order 
to  facilitate  and  assure  the  existence  of 
man  and  the  preservation  of  his  goods. 
Indeed,  the  presence  of  caverns  caused 
men  to  recognise  the  protective  virtue  of 
roof  and  wall,  and  the  knowledge  thus 
acquired  gave  rise  in  turn  to  the  making 
of  artificial  caves.  Holes  beneath  over- 
hanging banks  and  precipices  led  to  the 
building  of  houses  with  roofs  extending 
beyond  the  rambling  walls.  Perhaps  the 
protection  afforded  by  leafy  roofs,  and 
the  walls  formed  by  the  trunks  of  trees  in 
primeval  forests,  may  also  have  turned 
men's  thoughts  to  the  con- 
struction of  dwellings.  Houses 
of  various  forms  were  built,  cir- 
cular and  rectangular ;  some 
with  store-rooms  and  hearths.  The  use 
of  dwellings  presupposes  a  certain  amount 
of  consistency  in  the  mode  of  living,  the 
presence  of  local  ties,  and  a  general  spirit 
favouring  fixed  and  permanent  residence. 


Home 

and 

Dress 


Man's 

First 

Houses 


Nomadic  races  use  movable  or  temporary 
shelters  only — waggons,  tents,  or  huts. 

The  houses  of  stationary  peoples  become 
more  and  more  firm  and  stable.  At  first 
they  are  built  of  earth  and  wickerwork, 
later  of  stone,  and  finally  of  bricks,  as 
among  the  Babylonians.  Foun- 
dations are  invented,  dwellings 
are  accurately  designed  as  to 
line  and  angle ;  the  curved  line 
is  introduced,  bringing  with  it  arches 
both  round  and  pointed,  as  may  be  seen 
in  the  remains  of  Roman  and  Etruscan 
buildings.  The  structure  is  adorned,  and 
it  becomes  a  work  of  art. 

But  man  also  dwelt  over  the  water, 
sometimes  erecting  his  habitations  upon 
rafts  and  floats,  often  upon  structures 
that  rose  from  beneath  the  surface. 
Thus  was  he,  dwelling  in  communities  of 
various  sizes,  secure  from  the  attacks  of 
land  enemies.  Even  to-day  there  are 
uncivilised  peoples  who  live  over  water, 
constructing  their  homes  upon  piles. 

Clothing,  however,  was  invented  partly 
that  in  cold  climates  men  might  survive 
the  winter,  partly  for  the  sake  of  ornament. 
In  tropical  regions  man  originally  had  no 
knowledge  of  the  necessity  for  clothing  : 
garments  are  masks,  disguises  ;  they  bear 
with  them  a  charm  ;  they  are  the  peculiar 
property  of  the  medicine-men  or  of  those 
who  in  the  religious  dance  invoke  the 
higher    powers.     Modesty    is    a    derived 

IQI 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Taming 
of  the 
Wild 


feeling  ;  it  cannot  exist  until  a  high  state 
of  individualisation  has  been  attained, 
until  each  man  desires  exclusive  possession 
of  his  wife,  and  therefore  wishes  to  shield 
her  from  the  covetousness  of  other  men. 
With  the  knowledge  of  dress,  a  desire 
for  adornment,  the  effort  to 
assist  Nature  in  producing  cer- 
tain definite  aesthetic  effects, 
arises.  Less  uniformity  in  the 
appearance  of  the  body  is  wanted,  and 
this  brings  tattooing  and  the  use  of  orna- 
ment into  vogue.  Later  there  is  a  fusing 
of  these  several  aims  ;  clothing  becomes 
protection,  veil,  and  ornament  in  one,  ful- 
filling all  three  functions  at  the  same  time. 
Another  epoch-marking  discovery,  often 
arrived  at  while  races  are  still  in  the 
state  of  subsistence  by  hunting,  is  the 
domestication  of  animals.  This  may  have 
originated  in  the  practice  of  provoking 
one  beast  to  attack  another  in  order  to 
vanquish  them  both  the  more  easily. 
Further  development,  bringing  with  it  the 
idea  of  totemism  and  the  notion  that  the 
soul  of  an  animal  dwells  in  man,  drew 
him  nearer  to  his  animal  neighbours  ; 
and  he  sought  them  out  as  comrades  and 
attendants.  The  taming  of 
wild  creatures  arose  from  two 
sources — human  egoism,  and 
the  innate  feeling  of  unity  and 
identification  with  Nature 
common  to  all  savages  ;  hence 
on  the  one  hand,  the  subjuga- 
tion of  animals,  and,  on  the 
other,  their  domestication. 
Neither  employment  rendered 
it  by  any  means  less  possible 
for  men  to  hold  animals  in 
reverence,  or  to  attribute  to 
them  virtue  as  ancestral  spirits. 
Such  acquisitions  of  exter- 
nal culture  accompany  man 
during  the  transition  from  his 
subsistence  by  the  pure  pro- 
ducts of  Nature  to  the  culti- 
vation of  natural  resources, 
cattle-breeding  and  agriculture 
—  occupations  necessitating 
the  greatest  unrest  and  mo- 
bility. The  simple  life  in 
Nature  incites  men  to  wander 
forth  that  they  may  discover 
land  adapted  for  their  sup- 
port ;  they  rove  about  in 
search  of  roots  as  well  as  of 
living  prey.  The  breeding  of 
domestic  animals   also   causes 

192 


them  to  travel  in  the  hope  of  finding 
ground  for  pasture  ;  nor  does  agriculture 
in  its  primitive  form  tend  to  establish 
permanence  of  residence,  although  it 
contains  within  itself  latent  possibilities 
of  developing  a  settled  life,  one  of  the 
most  important  factors  in  the  progress  of 
mankind. 

Only  fixed,  domestic  peoples  are  able  to 
create  great  and  lasting  institutions,  to 
store  up  the  results  of  civilisation  for 
distant  later  races,  and  to  establish  a 
developed,  well-organised  commercial  and 
civil  life.  The  transition  from  nomadism 
to  life  in  permanent  residences  has, 
therefore,  been  one  of  the  greatest  steps 
in  the  development  of  humanity.  At  the 
time  of  the  beginnings  of  agriculture,  how- 
ever, man  was  still  a  periodic 
wanderer.  According  to  the 
field-grass  system  of  cultiva- 
tion, seed  is  sown  in  hastily- 
cleared  ground,  which  soon  becomes 
exhausted  and  is  then  abandoned.  A 
migration  follows  and  new  land  is  cleared. 
This  system  continues  until  men  learn  to 
cultivate  part  of  the  land  in  a  district, 
allowing  the  remainder  to  lie  fallow  for 


Mankind 
"  Settling 
Down  " 


PRIMITIVE    DWELLINGS    OF    TO-DAY:    HOUSE-BOATS 

AT   CANTON 

Not    only    are    there    lake-dwellers    to-day,    as    we    have    seen,   but 

even    large    communities,    as    at    Canton,    in    China,    live    in    boats, 


Mr" 


Ki\ 


1 1 


THE  BEGINNINGS  OF  COMMERCE:      PRIMITIVE  PEOPLE  BARTERING  IVORY  TUSKS 

AND  BULL-HIDES 


THE    GREAT    STEPS    IN    MAN'S    DEVELOPMENT 


a  time  in  order  that  the  soil  may  recover  ; 
thus  they  remain  fixed  in  their  chosen 
district.  Various  circumstances — for  ex- 
ample, the  danger  of  enemies  from  without, 
and  the  difficulties  attending  migration — 
must  have  led  to  this  change,  the  transition 
to  the  system  of  alternation  of  crops. 
The  wanderings  are  confined  to  less  ex- 
tensive regions,  the  same  fields  are 
returned  to  after  a  few  years,  until  finally 
tJie  relation  of  patches  under  culti- 
vation to  fallow  land  is  reduced  to  a 
system,  and  the  time  of  wandering  is  past. 
With  fixed  residence  the  forms  of 
communities  alter.  The  group  settles  in 
a  certain  district,  homes  are  built  close 
to  one  another,  and  the  patriarchal 
organisation  gives  place  to  the  village, 
which,  with  its  definite  boundaries,  is 
thenceforth  the  nucleus  of  the  social 
aggregate.  Often  several  village  com- 
munities have  fields  and  forests  in  com- 
mon, and  a  common  ownership  of  dams 
and  canals  ;  Nature  takes  care  that 
they  do  not  become  isolated,  but  unite 
together  in  close  contact  for  common 
defence  and  protection.  With  agricul- 
ture is  associated  the  working 
up  of  raw  products.  These 
are  fashioned  into  materials 
for  the  support  of  life  and  for 
enjoyment ;  furniture  for  dwellings, 
clothing,  tools,  utensils,  and  weapons 
are  made.  For,  however  much  agricul- 
ture favours  a  life  of  peace,  so  rarely 
does  man  live  in  friendship  with  his 
fellows  that  agricultural  peoples  also  find 
it  necessary  to  arm  themselves  for  war. 
At  first  manufacture  is  not  separated 
from  farming  ;  the  agriculturist  himself 
prepares  the  natural  products,  assisted  by 
the  members  of  his  family.  Later,  it  is 
easily  seen  that  some  individuals  are 
more  skilled  than  others  ;  it  is  also  recog- 
nised that  skill  may  be  developed  by 
practice  and  that  employments  must  be 
learned.  Therefore  it  is  requisite  that 
special  individuals  of  the  community 
should  prepare  themselves  for  particular 
activities  in  the  working  up  of  raw  pro- 
ducts and  pursue  these  activities  in  con- 
sistency with  the  needs  of  the  society — 
trade  or  craft.  The  craftsman  at  first 
labours  for  the  community ;  in  every 
village  the  tailor,  cobbler,  smith,  barber, 
and  schoolmaster  is  supported  by  society 
at  large.  The  craftsman  receives  his 
appointed  income — that  is,  his  portion 
of  the  common  supply  of  food ;  and,  in 

'3 


The  coming 
of  the 
Craftsman 


addition,  every  one  for  whom  he  expends 
his  labour  gives  him  something  in  compen- 
sation, or  finds  him  food  while  employed 
about  his  house,  until,  finally,  a  syste- 
matic method  of  exchange  is  established ; 
and  with  this  another  advance— an 
epoch  for  civilisation — is  arrived  at. 

This  is  the  division  of  labour.  It  is 
found  advantageous  not  only  that  the 
_      p.          craftsman     be     employed     as 

,  f  "^^  he  is  needed,  but  also  that  he 
Labour  ,  i         r  i       , 

Pr  bl  produce  a  supply  of  products 

peculiar  to  his  trade ;  for 
the  times  of  labour  do  not  in  the  least 
harmonise  with  the  times  of  demand. 
Although  during  the  first  periods  of  in- 
dustrial life  men  sought  more  or  less  to 
adjust  these  factors,  in  later  times  they 
become  wholly  separate  from  one  another. 
There  is  always,  in  addition,  labour  ready 
to  be  expended  on  casual  needs  ;  in  more 
advanced  phases  of  civilisation  this  con- 
dition of  affairs  is  not  avoided ;  but 
wherever  labour  can  be  disassociated 
from  fortuitous  necessity,  the  capacity 
for  production  is  greatly  increased.  Com- 
modities are  manufactured  during  the 
best  seasons  for  production  and  are 
preserved  until  the  times  of  need  ;  thus 
men  become  independent  of  the  moment. 
Here  also,  as  in  other  problems  of 
civilisation,  it  is  necessary  to  surmount 
the  incongruities  of  chance,  and  to  ren- 
der all  circumstances  serviceable  to  our 
purposes. 

Exchange  and  division  of  labour  are 
the  great  factors  of  the  progress  of  a 
civilisation  based  upon  industrialism. 
Crafts  and  trades  develop  and  improve  ; 
greater  and  greater  skill  is  demanded, 
and  consequently  the  time  of  preparation 
necessary  for  the  master  craftsman  be- 
comes longer  and  longer.  The  worker 
limits  himself  to  a  definite  sphere  of 
production  and  carries  his  trade  forward 
to  a  certain  perfection.  His  wares  will 
then  be  more  eagerly  sought  for  than 
those  made  by  another  hand ; 
-,  they  are  better,  yet    cheaper, 

r»      ,     .       for  his  labour  is  lightened  by 

Developing    ,  •  ,  ,  .,,        f^ .  .      -^ 

his  greater  skill.     His  various 

fellow  craftsmen,  and  the  agriculturist 
also,  must  exchange  their  goods  for  his  ; 
for  the  more  specialised  the  work  of  an 
individual,  the  more  necessary  the  com- 
munity is  to  him,  in  order  that  he  may 
satisfy  all  his  various  requirements.  Ex- 
change is  at  first  natural ;  that  is, 
commodities    are    traded    outright,    each 

193 


THE  BEARERS  OF  MANS  BURDENS:    PRIMITIVE  AND  NATURAL  METHODS  OF  CARRYING 
These  illustrations   show  a  palanquin   borne   by  horses ;    the   Chinese   single-wheel    cart    and    the    same 
assisted  by   a  donkey  and  a  sail ;    pack  mules  and  camels  ;    and  a  sledge  drawn  by  Esquimau  dogs, 

194 


SOME  METHODS  OF  CONVEYANCE 


VARIOUS 


AND    COUNTRIES 


In  this  plate  are  illustrated  a  caravan  of  yaks  ;  the  elephant  with  a  howdah  ;  the  African  litter  ;  reindeers  as  pack 
animals  ;   and   the  familiar  bullock  waggon   of   France — a    few  of  the  many  methods  of  carrying  used  by  man. 


195 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


individual  giving  goods  directly  in  return 
for  the  goods  he  receives.  The  production 
of  the  community  as  a  whole  has  become 
far  richer,  far  more  perfect.  The  labour 
of  the  organised  society  produces  more 
than  the  activity  of  separate  individuals. 

Here,  again,  is  shown  the  impulse  of 
man  to  free  himself  from  the  exigencies 
of  the  moment,  to  lift  himself  above  the 
fortuitous  differences  that   arise   between 


Mediums  of  exchange,  particularly 
necessary  for  the  carrying  on  of  traffic 
between  different  communities,  which  exist 
in  large  quantities  and  can  be  divided  up 
into  parts,  make  their  appearance  in  very 
early  times.  At  first  their  values  are  more 
or  less  empirical,  dependent  upon  the  con- 
ditions of  individual  cases,  until  gradu- 
ally a  medium  obtains  general  recognition 
and  thus  becomes  money.  The  same  need 
for  surmounting  the  lack  of 
uniformity  in  individual 
requirements  has  led  the 
most  different  peoples  in 
the  world  to  the  inven- 
tion of  money.  Naturally, 
many  different  things  have 
been  employed  as  mediums 
of  exchange ;  these  vary 
according  to  geographical 
situations,  conditions  of 
civilisation,  and  the  cus- 
toms of  races.  Pastoral 
tribes  at  first  employed 
cattle ;  but  tobacco,  cow- 
ries, strings  of  flat  shells, 
bits  of  mother  -  of  -  pearl, 
rings,  and  hides  are  also 
used.  At  last  it  is  found 
that  metal  is  stable,  dur- 
able, divisible,  and  of 
generally  recognised  value ; 
and  finally  the  precious 
metals  take  precedence  of 
all  others.  Finally  this 
form  of  money  is  adopted 
by  all  civilised  races. 

Division  of  labour  origin- 
ates in  the  development 
of  the  handicrafts,  in  the 
distinction  made  between 
the  labour  of  working  up 
the  raw  material  and  that 
(^f  its  production.  With 
the  help  of  a  currency  it 


PRIMITIVE    MONEY:      SELLING    A    SLAVE    FOR    COWRIES 

Cowries,  which  are  small  shells,  are  a  very  primitive  form  of  money,  still  used  in  leads  tO   a   Complete    traUS- 

parts  of  Africa  and  in  Siam.     They  were  formerly  so  used  in  India,  where -150,000  f^,-„,of  i^ri         nnt       r>nl\7      ni 

worth  used  to  be  imported  annually.     In  Africa  5,000  shells  are  equivalent  to  Si.  lOinidllOIl,       IIOL       Oiuy      Ol 

economic     relations,     but 


supply  and  demand.  The  more  varied 
the  production,  the  more  difficult  it  be- 
comes to  find  men  who  are  able  to  offer 
the  required  commodity  in  exchange  for 
what  has  been  brought  to  them.  An 
escape  from  this  embarrassment  lies  in 
the  discovery  of  a  universal  measure  of 
exchange  value  and  medium  of  exchange 
— money.  Money  is  the  means  of  adjust- 
ment which  renders  traffic  between  men 
independent  of  individual  requirements. 
196 


also  of  the  social  conditions  of  men. 

Country  becomes  city ;  centres  of  popu- 
lation which  rest  upon  an  industrial 
basis  arise  ;  in  many  cases  growth  of  the 
various  manufacturing  industries  is  fur- 
thered by  unfavourable  agricultural  con- 
ditions. Such  industrial  centres  require 
markets  and  market-places  ;  it  is  neces- 
sary for  the  producers  of  raw  materials  to 
come  to  market  from  the  country  with 
their  goods,  in  order  that  they  may  meet 


Early  Roman  bar  money  of  the  4th  century  B  C. 


THE  BEGINNING  OF  MONEY:    SOME  OF  THE  EARLIEST  KNOWN  COINS  IN  EXISTENCE 

Ofthese  coins,  chiefly  from  the  British  Museum,  the  South  England  iron  currency  bars  are  perhaps  most  interesting:. 

Our  reproduction  of  these  is  one-tenth  actual  size.      It   will  be    noticed    that  the    handles    and   the    sues    vary. 


THE  BEGINNING  OF  PRINTING:  STRADANUS'S  PRINTING  OFFICE  AT  ANTWERP  IN  THE  YEAR  1600 

From  a  very  rare  engraving  in  the  British  Museum 


THE    DEVELOPMENT    OF     PRINTING:      THE    LARGEST    PRESS    IN    THE    WORLD 

How  great  has  been  the  progress  in  the  art  oi  printing  is  seen  from  these  two  pictures.      The  modern   Hoe  print- 
ing  press  is  a  marvel  01'  mechanism.      The  first  editions  of  this   History  were  printed   on   a  similar    machine. 


198 


THE    GREAT    STEPS    IN    MAN'S    DEVELOPMENT 


together  with  the  craftsmen  of  the  city,  and 
with  other  producers  from  the  country  who 
offer  their  wares  in  turn.  The  market 
town  is  the  point  of  departure  for  further 
culture.  Here,  too,  the  endeavour  to 
harmonise  individual  incongruities  exists. 
Fruit  is  sent  to  market  ;  each  man  has  his 
choice  ;  an  exchange  value  is  determined 
by     means      of    .comparison, 

Y  ^  ^  through  analysis  of  the  indi- 
J^.  vidual  prices  which  themselves 

do  not  furnish  any  rational 
determination  of  worth,  and  therefore 
expose  both  buyer  and  seller  to  chance. 
Thus  a  market-price  develops.  The  city  is 
the  living  agency  promoting  industry  and 
exchange  ;  it  brings  its  population  into  con- 
tact with  the  population  of  the  country  by 
means  of  the  market,  and  prevents  men 
from  separating  into  isolated,  unsym- 
pathetic, or  even  hostile  groups. 

Here  industry  flourishes — arts,  crafts, 
and  large  manufactures.  In  the  latter, 
division  of  labour  is  developed  to  a  maxi- 
mum degree,  and  production  in  factories 
derives  a  further  impulse  through  the 
introduction  of  machinery.  Machines,  in 
contrast  to  implements  and  utensils,  are 
inanimate  but  organised  instruments  for 
labour,  requiring  subordinate  human 
activity  only  (attendance)  so  that  they 
may  impart  force  and  motion  in  a  manner 
corresponding  with  the  designs  of  the 
inventor.  Machinery  is  originally  of  simple 
form,  dependent  on  water  or  wind  for 
motive  power — rude  mills,  and  contriv- 
ances for  the  guiding  of  water  in  canals  or 
conduits  belong  to  its  primitive  varieties. 

But  man's  power  of  invention  increases, 
and  in  the  higher  stage  of  industrial  evolu- 
tion the  facilities  for  labour  are  enor- 
mous. We  have  but  to  think  of  steam  and 
of  electricity  with  all  their  tremendous 
developments  of  power.  Finally  the  dis- 
covery of  the  unity  of  force  leads  men  to 
look  upon  Nature  as  a  storehouse  of  energy 
and  to  devise  means  by  which  natural 
_,     ,,  forces    may    be    guided,    one 

The  Use  r  e  i    J     •     i 

f  M  (  form  of  energy  converted  mto 

P  _  another  and   transferred  from 

place  to  place  ;  and  thus  man 
becomes  almost  all-powerful.  He  is  not 
able  to  create,  it  is  true,  but  he 
may  at  least  mould  and  shape  to  his 
desire  that  which  Nature  has  already 
formed.  Thus  the  discovery  how  to 
direct  the  forces  of  Nature  enables 
us  again,  according  to  the  principle 
already  cited,  to  escape  the  disabilities  of 


human  differentiation  with  its  attendant 
incongruities. 

As  already  stated,  division  of  labour 
leads  to  exchange  ;  exchange  leads  to  com- 
merce. Commerce  is  exchange  on  a  large 
scale,  organised  into  a  system  with  special 
regard  to  the  production  of  a  store,  or 
supply.  The  latter  requires  a  certain 
knowledge  of  trade  ;  the  centres  of  demand 
must  be  sought  out,  and  the  goods  trans- 
ported to  these  centres.  In  this  way  a 
fruitful  reciprocal  action  develops  ;  and 
as  production  influences  trade,  so  may 
trade  influence  production,  governing  it 
according  to  the  fluctuations  of  demand, 
and  leading  to  the  creation  of  stores  of 
commodities  for  which  a  future  market 
is  to  be  expected.  Thus  commerce  pre- 
supposes special  knowledge  and  special 
skill ;  it  develops  a  special  technique 
through  which  it  is  enabled  to  execute  its 
complicated  tasks.  Men  who  live  by 
trade  become  distinct  from  craftsmen  ; 
and  the  mercantile  class  results.  Mer- 
chants are  men  whose  task  is  to  effect  an 
organised  exchange  of  natural  and  manu- 
factured products.  Commerce  always 
displays  an  impulse  to  extend 
Boundless     -^^^j^   beyond   the    borders    of 

Growth  of         •       1  "i  ■  ,     , 

^  smgle  nations — not   to  remam 

Commerce      •    i       j  i        u    -    j.      u 

mland  only,   but  to  become  a 

foreign  trade  also  ;  for  the  products  of 
foreign  countries  and  climates,  however 
valuable  they  may  be,  would  be  inacces- 
sible except  for  commerce.  Thus  trade 
becomes  both  import  and  export.  The 
first  step  is  for  the  tradesman  or  his  repre- 
sentative to  travel  about  peddling  goods, 
or  for  an  owner  of  wares  or  money  to  offer 
capital  to  an  itinerant  merchant  with  the 
object  that  the  latter  may  divide  the 
profits  with  him  later  on.  This  leads  to 
the  sending  of  merchandise  to  a  middle- 
man, who  places  it  on  the  market  in  a 
distant  region — commission  business.  The 
establishment  of  a  branch  or  agency  in  a 
foreign  country,  in  order  to  trade  there 
while  in  immediate  connection  with  the 
main  business  house,  follows  ;  and,  finally, 
merchants  deal  directly  with  foreign  houses 
without  the  intervention  of  middlemen, 
thus  entering  into  direct  export  trade. 
This,  of  course,  presupposes  a  great 
familiarity  with  foreign  affairs  and  con- 
fidence in  their  soundness ;  consequently 
it  is  possible  only  in  a  highly  developed 
state  of  civilisation. 

Foreign  trade  is  carried  on  overland  by 
means  of  caravans,  and,  in  later,  times, 

199 


aoo 


THE    GREAT    STEPS    IN    MAN'S    DEVELOPMENT 


by  railways  ;  over  sea,  through  a  merchant 
marine^saihng  vessels  and  steamships. 
The  magnitude  of  commerce,  its  peculiar 
methods,  and  its  manifold,  varying  phases 
combine  to  produce  new  and  surprising 
phenomena  :  traffic  by  sea  leads  to  insur- 
ance and  to  different  forms  of  commercial 
associations  ;  intercourse  by  caravan  gives 
rise  to  the  construction  of  halt- 
ing-stations, establishments  for 


Birth  of  New 
Trades  and 
Institutions 


refreshment  and  repair,  that 
finally  develop  into  taverns 
and  inns.  And  that  which  first  arose  from 
necessity  is  subsequently  turned  to  use  for 
other  purposes  :  insurance  is  one  of  the 
most  fruitful  ideas  of  the  present  day  ; 
hotels  are  an  absolute  necessity. 

Commerce  is  able  to  bring  further  con- 
trivances and  institutions  into  being,  here, 
again,  overcoming  individual  incongruity 
by  means  of  combination.  Trade  cannot 
always  be  carried  on  directly  between  the 
places  of  production  and  of  consumption  ; 
one  district  requires  more,  another  less  ; 
it  would  be  difficult  to  supply  all  from 
one  centre  of  distribution.  Thus  an 
intermediate  carrying  trade  is  developed, 
rendering  the  surmounting  of  obstacles  less 
difficult  and  increasing  the  stability  of  the 
market.  The  demands  of  the  middleman 
are  compensated  for  by  these  advantages. 
Thus  the  world's  commerce  develops,  and 
that  which  is  accomplished  by  market 
traffic  in  lesser  districts  is  brought  about 
by  the  concentrative  influence  of  bourses, 
or  exchanges,  in  the  broadest  spheres. 
Here,  as  in  the  smaller  markets,  the  ten- 
dency is  for  all  prices  to  seek  a  level,  to 
become  as  independent  as  possible  of 
individual  conditions ;  and  so  commerce 
between  nations,  and  the  possibility  of 
ordering  goods  from  the  most  distant 
lands,  bring  with  them  an  adjustment  : 
world  prices  are  formed  ;  and  to  establish 
these  is  the  business  of  the  exchanges. 
The  exchange  is  a  meeting  together  of 
merchants  for  the  trans- 
action of  business  by  pur- 
chase or  sale.  It  has 
acquired  still  more  the 
character  of  a  world' institution  since  men 
have  been  able  to  interchange  advices  by 
means  of  telegraph  and  telephone  ;  it  is 
possible  for  the  bourses  of  different  countries 
to  transact  business  with  one  another  from 
moment  to  moment,  so  that  the  ruling  prices 
of  the  world  can  be  immediately  known. 
It  has  already  been  stated  that  com- 
merce leads  to  a  taking  up  of  residence  in 


Commerce 
Brings  the 
World  Together 


Supply 
of  Human 
Labour 


foreign  countries  ;   it  also  leads  to  colonisa- 
tion, and  it  is  chiefly  due  to  commerce  that 
civilisation  is  introduced  into  foreign  lands. 
In  earlier  centuries  the  labour  question 
was    settled    by  means  of    the  legal  sub- 
jection of  certain  classes  of  men,  until  com- 
plete in  justice  was  reached  in  slavery.    The 
system  was  rendered   still  more  efficient 
by    making    slave-ownership    hereditary. 
Slavery    originated    in    wars    and    man- 
hunting,   in   times  when   there  were   but 
few    domesticated    animals    and    no    ma- 
chines, when  utensils  were  very  imperfect 
and  a  more  or  less  developed  mode  of  life 
could  only  be  conducted  by  means  of  the 
manual  labour  of  individuals.    Therefore, 
in  order  to  obtain  labourers,  men  resorted 
to  force,  introducing  a  slave  population  of 
which  the  individuals  were  either  divided 
among  households  or  kept  in  special  slave 
habitations.       The  industry  of  the  slave 
was    often    increased   by   the   promise  of 
definite  privileges  or  private  possessions. 
He  was  often  granted  a  home  and  family 
life,  and    thus  he    became  a    bondman — 
burdened  and  taxed  and  bound 
to  the  soil,  it  is  true,  but  other- 
wise   looked    upon  as    a  man 
possessed    of    ordinary    rights 
and  privileges.    Even  during  the  days  of 
slavery  there  were  instances  of  emancipa- 
tion, and  the  possibility  was  opened  up  of 
rising  to  the  social  position  of  a  slave-owner. 
The  evolution  of  a  free  working  class, 
with  recompense  for  labour,  is  one  of  the 
most  important  chapters  in  the  history  of 
modern  civilisation.     The  chief  sphere  of 
development    is    that    of   the    crafts    and 
trades.     The  power  of  guilds  often  induces 
legislation    in    their    favour ;     thus    they 
become  monopolies,  and  only  such  indi- 
viduals as  are  members  of  an  association 
may  adopt  its  particular  trade  or  craft 
as   a    profession.      Sometimes    the   unity 
of  a  guild  is  broken,  and  the  individual 
right  to  form  judgments  enters  in  place 
of  the  rules  laid  down  by  the  corporation. 
From    this    results    competition,    which 
finally    leads     up     to     free    competition. 
Through  free  competition, the  encumbering 
rigidity  of  the  guilds  is  avoided  ;    it  leads 
to  a  high  development  of  the  individual, 
and  is  therefore  a  great  source  of  progress  ; 
it  discloses  the  secrets  of  the  craft,  freeing 
men    from    deeply-rooted    prejudices    in 
regard  to  different  vocations  ;  and   it  in- 
creases man's  inventive  capacity,  producing 
new  methods  for  carrying  on  trades  and 
new  combinations  and  connections. 


201 


202 


■v-lwt-l^-A-IWHfrHHHHHWt-JWMMUHWWWtilMWViHMt-O-lHi 


STEPS  IN 

MAN'S 

DEVELOPMENT 

II 


--n..i^.^yJi-i\~r\~nJMi~ji-.ii-j\-i\,^n.j\,ji~^^ 


>-<wr-fr^>-ll-<l-tm-«>MH>^>-t>^W»^l-)»-<K^tMS-1V-f>-tVHV^V^V-lMMV-4MWWi 


~iun-n--ft-ji-n-n-^ 


Professor 
JOSEPH 
KOHLER 


WMMMM\-IMMHMMMM>-lMMt-IMI-IMV-<MM>-IMWV-<,-IMMMV-l)-A^<Ml? 


THE    HIGHER    PROGRESS   OF    MANKIND 


CPIRITUAL  culture  may  develop  in  the 
*^  directions  of  knowing  and  of  feeling. 
These  two  forms  of  the  manifestation  of 
consciousness  are  originally  not  to  be 
separated  from  each  other  ;  but  as  time 
goes  on,  a  preponderance  of  one  or  the 
other  becomes  noticeable.  Language  is 
the  first  result  of  spiritual  culture  :  the 
communication  of  thoughts  by  means  of 
words  (sound  pictures  of  ideas).  Language 
arises  from  the  necessities  of  life,  from 
the  need  for  communication  among  the 
members   of  a  social  aggregate. 

A  much  later  acquisition,  the  art  of 
writing,  or  the  fixation  of  language  in  a 
definite,  permanent  form,  stands  in  close 
connection  with  speech.  Writing  develops 
according  to  two  systems  :  the  one  based 
on  the  symbollising  or  picturing  of  ideas — 
picture-writing,  hieroglyphics ;  and  the 
other  on  the  breaking  up  of  the  speech- 
sounds  of  a  language  into  a  notation  of 
syllables  or  letters — syllabic  or  letter  writ- 
ing. According  to  the  first  method  thoughts 
are  directly  pictured  ;  according  to  the 
second,  sounds,  not 
ideas,  are  represented 
by  symbols  —  that 
is,  the  sounds  which 
stand  for  the  ideas 
are  transformed  into 
signs.  The  transition 
from  sign  to  syllabic 
writing  comes  about 
in  this  manner  :  if, 
during  its  develop- 
ment, a  language  uses 
the  same  sovmd  to 
express  various  con- 
ceptions, men  repre- 
sent this  sound  by  one 
sign  ;  and  whenever 
a  foreign  word  is 
reproduced  in  writing; 
it  is  first  separated 
into  syllables,  and 
the  syllables  are  then 
pictured  by  the  same 
signs  as  are  employed 
to  represent  similar 
sounds — but  different 


GUTENBERG,  THE   INVENTOR  OF  PRINTING 
Nothing  has  eclipsed  the  printing:  press  as  an  agency 
of    man's    intellectual    and    spiritual    advancement. 


ideas — in  the  native  speech.  Thus  sym- 
bols are  employed  more  and  more  phoneti- 
cally, and  less  and  less  meaning  comes  to 
be  attached  to  them.  This  process  must 
continue  its  development  if  the  pronuncia- 
tion changes  as  lime  goes  on  ;  the  old 
writing,  with  its  national  symbol-method, 
may  be  retained  ;  but  with  the  changing 
of  speech-sounds  the  new  writing  is  altered  ; 
s^dlables  are  now  represented  by  signs, 
and  combinations  of  syllables  are  repro- 
duced by  means  of  a  combination  of  their 
corresponding  symbols.  Thus  phonetic 
writing  was  not  an  invention,  but  a  gradual 
development.  Together  with  the  phonetic 
symbols,  ideograms  or  hieroglyphs  also 
exist,  as  in  Babylonian.  It  is  especially 
interesting,  and  indicative  of  the  unity  of 
the  human  mind,  that  the  transition  to 
syllabic  writing  has  been  arrived  at  inde- 
pendently by  different  races  ;  the  Aztecs, 
for  example,  exhibit  a  wholly  independent 
development. 

Communication  by  writing  ma}'  be 
either  single  or  private,  or  general  and 
pubhc  ;  in  the  latter 
case  plurality  is  at- 
tained through  such 
methods  as  the 
affixing  of  bills  and 
placards,  or  by  means 
of  transcripts  or  re- 
productions of  the 
original  copy.  At 
first  the  latter  are 
made  in  accordance 
with  the  ordinary 
methods  of  writing  ; 
and  in  slave-holding 
communities — Rome, 
for  example — slaves 
who  wrote  to  dicta- 
tion were  employed 
as  scribes.  The  dis- 
covery of  a  method 
by  which  to  obtain 
a  plurality  of  copies 
through  a  single 
mechanical  process 
was  epoch-making. 
The      printing-press 


203 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


has  performed  a 
far  greater  service 
to  humanity  than 
have  most  inven- 
tions ;  for, with  the 
possibihty  of  pro- 
ducing thousands 
of  copies  of  a  com- 
munication, thr 
thoughts  em- 
bodied in  it  be- 
come forces ;  they 
may  enter  the 
minds  of  many 
individuals  who 
are  either  con- 
vinced or  actualh 
guided  by  tliem. 
Ideas  beconn 
active  through 
their  suggestion 
on  the  masses  ol 
the  population . 
This  may  lead  to 
a  one-sided  ruli' 
of  p.ublic  opinion  : 
but  a  healthy  race 
will   travel    intel-      examples  of  aztec  hieroglyphic  sculpture  and  writing 

lectually   in    many    The  hieroglyphics  and  script  of  the  Aztecs  were  independently  developed.  The  first  illustration 
f'lirp>r^+ir»nc  a  n  ~r\     '^  from  a  sculpture  in  Mexico,  and  the  other  is  a  small  reproduction  of  a  page  of  the  Maya 

(UreCTlOnS,         a  n  O    manuscript  at  Dresden.  In  both  cases  the  symbolism  is  only  imperfectly  understood  at  present. 

various    beliefs 


The 

Spreading 
of  Ideas 


supplement  one  another,  struggle  together, 
conquer,  and  are  conquered.  In  this 
manner  thoughts  awaken  popular  move- 
ments, rousing  a  people  to  a 
hitherto  unknown  degree,  and 
forcing  men  to  think  and  to 
join  issues.  Thus  the  Press  be- 
comes a  factor  in  civilisation  of  the  ver^^ 
first  importance.  The  necessity  for  periodic 
communication,  together  with  curiosity 
that  refuses  to  wait  long  for  information, 
leads  to  the  establishment  of  regularly 
recurrent  publications  ;  and  thus,  in 
addition  to  the  book-press,  the  newspaper- 
press,  that  has  learned  how  to  hold  great 
centres  of  population  under  its  control, 
appears.  Naturally  this  method  of  aiding 
the  progress  of  civilisation  has  its  dis- 
advantages, as  have  all  other  methods  ; 
the  conception  of  the  world  becomes 
superficial  ;  individuality  loses  in  charac- 
ter ;  not  only  a  certain  levelling  of  educa- 
tion, but  also  a  levelling  of  views  of  life 
and  ot  modes  of  thought,  results.  But,  on 
the  whole,  knowledge  is  sj^read  abroad  as 
it  never  was  before. 

Man,  as  a  thinking  being,  craves  for  a 
conception    of    life ;     and  in  his  inmost 

204 


thoughts  he  seeks  for  an  explanation  of  the 
double  relationship  of  I\Ian  to  Nature  and 
of  Nature  to  Man,  striving  to  bring  all  into 
harmony.     This  he  finds  in  religion. 

Religion  is  belief  in  God  ;  that  is, 
belief  in  spiritual  forces  inseparable  from 
and  interwoven  through  the  universe — 
forces  that  render  all  things  distinct 
and  separate,  yet  make  all  coalescent 
and  firm,  permeating  all,  and  giving  to 
every  object  its  individuality.  Man  is 
impelled  by  Nature  to  conceive  of  the 
universe  as  divine.  This  idea  exhibits 
itself  universally  among  primitive  folk 
in  the  form  of  animism — a  belief  that 
the  entire  internal  and  external  world  is 
animated,  filled  with  supernatural  beings 
that  have  originally  no  determinate  nature, 
but  which  may  appear  in  the 
most  \aried  of  forms,  may 
vanish  and  may  create  them- 
selves anew,  as  clouds  arise 
from  unseen  vapour  in  the  air.  Spirits 
are  supposed  to  be  not  far  removed  from 
man  ;  families  as  well  as  individuals 
consider  themselves  to  stand  more  or 
less  in  connection  with  them  ;  and  men, 
too,  have  a  share  in  the  invisible  world 


Man's 
Craving  for 
Religion 


THE    HIGHER    PROGRESS    OF    MANKIND 


Beginnings 
of  Nature 
Worship 


when  they  have  cast  aside  the  garment 
of  the  body  in  dream  or  in  death.  Thus, 
every  man  is  thought  to  have  his  pro- 
tecting spirit,  his  manitou,  that  reveals 
itself  to  him  through  signs  and  dreams. 
Special  incarnations,  objects  in  which 
supernatural  beings  are  in- 
herent or  with  which  they  are 
in  some  way  connected,  are 
called  "  fetiches  "  ;  hence  arises 
fetichism,  in  regard  to  which  the  strangest 
ideas  were  held  in  previous  centuries 
when  the  science  of  anthropology  was 
unknown.  Trees,  rocks,  rivers,  bits  of 
wood,  images  of  one's  own  making— any 
of  these  are  thought  capable  of  containing 
beings  of  divine  nature.  Naturally,  the 
tree  or  the  fragment  of  wood  or  of  stone 
is  not  worshipped,  as  men  formerly 
thought,  but  the  spirit  that  is  believed  to 


The  Realm 

of 

Shadows 


THE   GREAT   BUDDHA   AT   KAMAKURA,   IN  JAPAN 
Professor  Kohler  points  out  that  in  the  history  of  the  world's  religions, 
although  the  belief  in  the  omnipotence  of  God  has  become  so  wide- 
spread, It  is   not  thought  inconsistent  that  a  Buddha,  claiming-  to 
incarnate  the  Supreme  Being  completely  within  himself,  should  appear. 


have  entered  it.  In  many  cases  the  belief 
approaches  worship  of  Nature,  especially 
among  agricultural  peoples.  Divinity  is 
recognised  in  the  shape  of  factors  essential 
to  agriculture — sun,  sky,  lightning, 
thunder ;  these  being  the  beneficent 
deities^  in  contrast  to  whom  are  the 
earth-spirits  who  bring  pestilences, 
earthquakes,  and  other  evils  to  man- 
kind. Thus  the  cult  is  refined ;  spirits  are 
no  longer  attached  to  fetiches,  but  men 
worship  the  heavens,  and  the  earth  also. 
Religion  accompanies  man  from  birth 
to  death.  Spirits  both  for  good 
and  for  evil  are  supposed  to 
hover  about  him  at  his  very 
birth.  The  soul  of  some  being — 
perhaps  an  animal,  perhaps  an  ancestor — 
enters  into  the  new-born  child,  and  from 
this  spirit  he  receives  his  name. 

Oftentimes  there  is  a  new  con- 
secration at  the  time  of  marriage; 
often  when  an  heir-apparent  suc- 
ceeds to  the  chieftainship.  At  his 
decease  primitive  folk  believe  that 
man  enters  the  realm  of  shadows. 
At  first  he  hovers  over  the  sea  or 
river  of  death,  and  often  only 
after  having  passed  through  many 
hardships  does  he  arrive  in  the 
new  kingdom,  where  he  either 
continues  to  live  after  the  manner 
of  his  former  existence,  or,  accord- 
ing to  whether  his  life  on  earth 
has  been  good  or  evil,  inhabits  a 
higher  or  a  lower  supernatural 
sphere.  To  the  dead  are  conse- 
crated their  personal  possessions — 
horses,  slaves,  wives  even — that 
they  ma}^  make  use  of  them  during 
the  new  existence  ;  men  go  head- 
hunting in  order  to  send  them 
new  helpmates.  On  the  other 
hand  great  care  is  often  taken 
that  the  spirits  of  the  departed, 
satisfied  with  their  new  existence, 
may  no  longer  molest  the  world  of 
the  living  :  propitiative  offerings 
are  made  ;  men  avoid  mentioning 
the  name  of  the  departed,  that 
he  may  not  be  tempted  to  visit 
them  with  his  presence  ;  they  seek 
to  make  themselves  unrecognisable 
during  the  time  immediately  fol- 
lowing his  death,  wear  different 
clothes,  and  adopt  other  dwelling- 
places.  Sometimes  the  light  placed 
near  the  deceased  for  the  purpose 
of  guiding   him    back   to   his   old 

205 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


home  is  moved  further  and  further  away, 
so  that  his  ghost,  unable  to  find  the  right 
path,  shah  never  return. 

Thus  the  behef  in  spirits  encompasses 
primitive  man,  foUovving  him  step  by  step. 
From  animism  develops  worship  of 
heroes  and  polytheism,  with  their  atten- 
dant mythological  narrations.  The  idea 
of  the  unity  of  the  supernatural  world 
becomes  lost ;  and  the  indefinite  forms 
of  spirit  become  separate,  independent 
beings,  that  are  developed  more  and 
more  in  the  direction  of  the  souls  either 
of  animals  or  of  men.  This  splitting  up 
of  the  deity,  which  destroys  the  tendency 
toward  unity  in  religion,  is  followed  by 
a  reaction  that  comes  about 
partly  through  a  belief  in  crea- 


The  Belief 


Many  Gods 


tion  by  a  father  of  the  gods, 
partly  through  acceptance  of 
a  historical  origin  of  the  mythological 
world  from  a  single  source  (theogonic 
myths),  and  partly  through  direct 
banishment  of  the  plurality  of  gods  and 
a  new  formation  of  the  belief  in  a  unity 
according    either    to    theistic    or   to    pan- 


theistic ideas.     In  spite  of  the  conception 

of  a  world  permeated  and  pervaded  by 

God  alone,  the  belief  that  certain  persons 

and  places  are  more  powerful  in  respect 

to  the  divinity  than  others  is  retained  ; 

and   the   appearance   from   time   to  •  time 

„      .  of   a   Buddha  who   incarnates 

Happiness  j  ■  c     j^       j_i         o 

.       .  and    mamtests    the    Supreme 

.    „  ,.  .        Being  directly  and  completelv 

m  Religion        ..,P      ,.        -l.  ^        .  ", 

withm    himselt — m    a    special 

manner  apart  from  other  natural  phe- 
nomena— is  also  not  looked  upon  as 
inconsistent. 

Religion  is  a  thing  of  the  emotions,  not 
merely  in  the  sense  of  having  its  origin 
in  fear,  or  in  the  remembrance  of  lasting 
sensations  derived  from  visions  or  dreams, 
but  emotional  in  so  far  that  it  satisfies 
the  necessity  felt  by  men  for  a  consistent 
life-conception — not  an  intellectual  but 
an  emotional  conception.  It  is  not  the 
matter-of-fact  desire  for  knowledge  that 
finds  its  expression  in  religion,  but  the  joy 
of  the  heart  in  a  supreme  power,  the  call 
for  help  of  the  needy,  and  the  conscious- 
ness  of   our   own   insignificance   and   our 


A  STRANGE  RELIGIOUS  RITE:  FUNERAL  SACRIFICE  OF  THE  TODAS  IN  SOUTHERN  INDIA 
The  elaborate  and  extraordinary  funeral  rites  of  the  Todas  illustrate  admirably  the  older  notions  of  life  and  death. 
A  funeral  endures  for  several  days  ;  the  body  is  cremated  ;  last  of  all  the  buffaloes  of  the  deceased  are  slaughtered  at 
the  grave  and  thought  to  enter  into  mystic  reunion  with  their  master.  In  olden  timeS  a  whole  troop  would  be 
slaughtered,  but  under  British  influence  the  number  has  been  limited  to  one  for  a  common  person  and  two  for  a  chief. 

206 


NOAHS    SACRIFICE 
From  the   painting  by  Daniel   Maclise,    R.A. 


mortality.  Judgment  is  not  yet 
abstracted  from  the  other  psychic  func- 
tions ;  indeed,  it  really  retires  behind 
the  emotions. 

When  men  thus  believe  in  divinity,  if 
the  belief  have  an  active  influence  on  the 
emotions,  it  follows  that  the  individual 
must  establish  some  connection  between 
himself  and  the  object  of  his  worship. 
This  is  brought  about  through  certain 
actions,  or  through  the  creation  of  cir- 
cumstances in  which  special  conditions 
of  consecration  are  perceived,  and  there- 
with the  possibility  of  a  close  relationship 
with  the  Supreme  Being.  The  acts 
through  which  this  relationship  may  be 
brought    about,    taken   collec- 

„  ^.  ,  tively,  are  embraced  in  the  word 
Basis  of  »,        -^   1  •     ,,  J      r  r  j 

,„      ..  worship,      and  if  performed 

Worship  J  •  i.  i  ■   i.  A 

according    to   a  strict   system 

they  are  called  "  rites."     Sacrifice  has  an 

important    place    among    the    ceremonies 

observed   in   accordance   with   ritual.     It 

is  based  on  a  conception  of  the  wants  and 

necessities  of  the  higher  beings,  and,   in 

later  times,  is  refined  into  a  representation 


of  man's  ethical  feelings — unselfishness 
and  gratitude,  which  give  pleasure  to  the 
Deity  and  thus  contribute  to  its  happiness. 
But  sacrifice  does  not  retain  its  unselfish 
character  for  any  great  length  of  time. 
Man  thinks  of  himself  first  :  he  makes 
fk  z-'  k  offerings  to  the  good  spirits,  but 
of  the  ^"^  more  particularly  to  the  evil 
n  •  ^1.  ,  gods,  in  order  to  pacify  their 
Priesthood     y  J  ii     •  -1 

fury    and    appease    their    evil 

desires.  Sacrifices  are  also  offered  to  the 
dead,  and  from  such  offerings  and 
memorials  is  developed  the  idea  of  a 
"  family  "  or  "  clan,"  which  outlives  the 
individual. 

Thus,  emotion  is  the  principal  active 
agent  ;  but  intellectual  power  also  must 
gradually  lay  its  hold  on  the  system  of 
belief.  The  principles  discovered  are 
formulated  into  a  science  ;  and  the  culti- 
vation of  this  science  becomes  the  special 
duty  of  the  priesthood,  often  as  a  secret 
art^esoteric  system — in  which  conceal- 
ment is  conducive  to  the  maintenance  of 
the  exclusiveness  and  peculiar  power  of 
the    priest    class.     The    science    becomes 

207 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


partly  mythologic-historical,   partly  dog- 
matic, and  partly  ritualistic. 

The  artistic  instinct  develops  partly  in 
connection  with  worship,  partly  in  the 
direction  of  its  practical  application  to 
life  ;  and  although  no  very  sharp  line 
of  distinction  is  drawn  between  the  two 
tendencies,  the  germ  at  least  of  the 
_  difference     between     the     fine 

_".  .  and     the     industrial     arts     is 

c  igjon        ^j_^^^^    .^    existence    from    the 

very  earliest  times.  Worship 
gives  rise  to  images  and  pictures,  at 
first  of  the  very  roughest  form.  They 
are  not  mere  symbols  ;  they  are  the 
garments  or  habitations  with  which  the 
spirit  invests  itself.  The  spirit  may  take 
up  its  abode  anyw^here  according  to  the 
different  beliefs  of  man — in  a  plant,  an 
animal,  a  stone,  above  all,  in  a  picture 
or  effigy  that  symbolically  reflects  its 
peculiarities.  Therefore,  the  ghosts  of 
ancestors  are  embodied  in  ancestral  images. 
Just  as  skulls  were  reverenced  in  earlier 
times,  in  later  days  the  images  of  the  dead 
[konvar)  are  worshipped.  Such  images 
are  the  oldest  examples  of  the  art  of 
portraiture  ;  and  the  oldest  dolls  are  the 
rude  puppets  which  according  to  the  rites 
of  many  races — the  American  Indians, 
for  example — widows  must  wear  about 
them  as  tokens,  or  as  the  husks  or  wrappers 
of  their  husbands'  doubles. 

Religion  itself  becomes  poetry.  The 
belief  in  the  identity  of  spirits  of  the 
dei)arted  with  animals,  and  the  myths  of 
metamorphosis,  take  the  form  of  fables 
and  fairy  tales ;  the  cosmogonic  and 
theogonjc  conceptions  develop  into  my- 
thologies ;  hero  sagas  become  epics  ;  the 
myths  of  life  in  Nature  become  a  glorifi- 
cation of  the  external  world,  an  expression 
of  unity  with  Nature,  and  thus  a  form  of 
lyric  poetry. 

Everyday  life,  too,  demands  artistic 
expression.  At  first  the  childish  passion 
for  the  changing  pictures  that  correspond 
.  ,.  ^.  with    different    ideas    of    the 

Artistic  •       ,•  -,,         ,, 

r  .       imagmation     oms     with     the 

Expression     i      •         ,       •  ,,  , 

J ,  .J  desire  to  impress  others,   and 

finery  in  dress  and  ornamenta- 
tion result.  This  has  developed  in  every 
clime.  Tattooing  arises  not  only  from  a 
religious  motive,  but  also  from  the  desire 
for  ornament.  The  painting  of  men's 
bodies,  the  often  grotesque  ideas,  such  as 
artificial  deformation  of  the  head,  knocking 
out  and  blackening  of  teeth,  ear  ornaments 
and  mutilation  of  ears,  pegs  thrust  through 
208 


the  lips,  and  various  methods  of  dressing 
the  hair,  may  be  in  part  connected  with 
religious  conceptions,  for  here  the  most 
varied  of  motives  co-operate  to  the  same 
end.  Yet,  on  the  other  hand,  there  is  no 
doubt  that  they  are  also  the  outcome  of 
a  craving  for  variation  in  form  and  in 
colour.  In  the  same  way  the  darice  is 
not  only  an  act  of  worship  ;  it  is  also  a 
means  of  giving  vent  to  latent  animal 
spirits  :  thus,  dances  are  often  expressions 
of  the  tempestuous  sensual  instincts  of  a 
people. 

The  dance  exhibits  a  special  tendency 
to  represent  the  ordinary  affairs  of  life 
in  a  symbolic  manner  ;  thus  there  are  war 
and  hunting  dances,  and  especially  animal 
dances  in  which  each  of  the  participants 
believes  himself  to  be  permeated  by  the 
spirit  of  some  animal  which  throughout 
the  dance  he  endeavours  to  mimic.  In 
this  way  dramatic  representation,  which  is 
certainly  based  on  the  idea  of  personifica- 
tion, on  the  notion  that  a  man  for  the 
time  being  may  be  possessed  by  the 
spirit  of  some  other  creature  that  speaks 
and  acts  through  him,  originates.     Thus 

nni  «.  .1  arose  the  primitive  form  of 
The  Birth  •         u-   u  j  j 

,  masques,  m  which  men  dressed 

..     T^  themselves     up     to     resemble 

the  Drama  f  1 

various      creatures,      real      or 

imaginary,  as  in  the  case  of  the  animal 
masques  of  old  time ;  lor  according  to 
the  popular  idea  the  spirit  dwells  in  the 
external,  visible  form,  and  through  the 
imitation  or  adoption  of  its  outward 
appearance  we  become  identified  with 
the  spirit  whose  character  we  assume. 
Among  many  races  not  only  masks  proper 
were  worn,  but  also  the  hides  and  hair  or 
feathers  of  the  creatures  personated. 
Dramatic  representation  was  furthered 
by  the  dream  plays — especially  popular 
among  the  American  Indians — in  which 
the  events  of  dreams  are  adapted  for 
acting  and  performed.  Even  as  men 
seek  illumination  in  dreams  as  to  questions 
both  divine  and  mundane,  so  do  they 
anticipate  through  dreams  the  dramatic 
representations  which  shall  be  performed 
on  holidays  as  expressions  of  life. 

Play  is  a  degeneration  of  the  dance, 
and  it  arises  less  from  the  instinct  for 
beauty  than  from  a  desire  to  realise 
whatever  entertainment  and  excitement 
may  be  got  from  any  incident  or  occur- 
rence. Erom  another  special  inclination 
originate  those  satirical  songs  of  Northern 
peoples,    written    in    alternating    verses, 


SAVAGE  DANCES:  THE  FAR-OFF  BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  DRAMA 
Ji'nnf^ic''!  \s  ^".effort  to  give  symbolic  expression  to  affairs  and  moods  of  everyday  life.  Thus  the  Zulu  wedding 
dance  is  self-evident  in  its  purpose.  The  second  illustration  depicts  a  strange  religious  dance  of  the  Australian 
e^Sff  .°nH^^h^  with  otemism  or  animism,  The  third  picture  shows  dancefs  in  Kandy  endeavouring  to  ban  th 
evil  spirits,  and  the  last  illustrates  an  Australian  corroboree.    From  such  sources  the  drama  has  been  slowly  evolved. 


14 


209 


HISTORY     OF    THE    WORLD 


in  which  the  national  tribunal  and  the 
voice  of  the  people  are  given  expression 
at  the  same  time.  Thus  they  have  a  truly 
educative  character.  These  are  the  pre- 
liminary steps  to  the  free  satire  and 
humour  that  gleam  through  the  lives  of 
civilised  peoples,  now  like  the  flicker  of  a 
candle,  now  like  a  purifying  lightning 
A  t  &  PI  flash,  freeing  men  from  life's 
.  '".  *^  monotony,  and  illuminating 
L'f  f  M  ^^^  night  of  unsolved  questions. 
Capacity  for  organised  play  is  a 
characteristic  that  hfts  man  above  the 
lower  animals.  The  expression  of  individu- 
ality without  any  particular  object  in  view, 
the  elevation  of  self  above  the  troubles  of 
life,  and  free  activity,  uncoerced  by  the 
necessities  of  existence,  are  characteristic 
both  of  play  and  of  art.  Thus  play,  as  well 
as  art,  exhibits  to  a  pre-eminent  degree 
man's  consciousness  of  having  escaped,  if 
only  temporarily,  from  the  coercion  of 
environing  nature  ;  being  without  definite 
object,  it  proves  that  he  can  find  employ- 
ment when  released  from  the  pressure  of 
the  outer  world — that  is,  when  he  is 
momentarily  freed  from  his  endeavour 
to  establish  a  balance  between  himself 
and  the  necessities  of  life,  with  a  view  to 
overcoming  the  latter.  Man  stands  in 
close  connection  with  his  environment 
and  with  the  immutable  laws  of  nature  ; 
but  in  play  and  in  art  he  develops  his  own 
personality — a  development  that  neither 
in  direction  nor  in  object  is  influenced 
by  the  outer  world  and  its  constraint. 

The  step  that  leads  to  the  overcoming 
of  custom  is  the  recognition  of  right. 
"  Right  "  is  that  which  society  strictly 
demands  from  every  individual  member. 
Not  all  that  is  customary  is  exacted  by 
right  ;  a  multitude  of  the  requirements  of 
custom  may  be  ignored  without  opposi- 
tion from  the  community  as  a  whole, 
although,  of  course,  detached  individuals 
may  express  their  displeasure.  The  aggre- 
gate, however,  grants  immunity  to  all  who 
F  11  f  M  *^°  "°^  choose  to  follow  the 
and  Rise  custom.      In  other  words,  the 

ofthe'Racc  separation  of  custom  from 
right  signifies  the  develop- 
ment of  a  sharper  line  of  demarcation  be- 
tween that  which  is  and  that  which  ought 
to  be.  In  primitive  times  "  is  "  and 
"  ought  to  be  "  are  fairly  consonant  terms  ; 
but  gradually  a  spirit  of  opposition  is  de- 
veloped ;  cases  arise  in  which  custom  is 
oj^posed,  in  which  the  actions  of  men  run 
counter    to    a    previous    habit.       Man   is 

210 


conscious  of  the  possibility  of  raising  him- 
self above  the  unreasoning  tendencies 
toward  certain  modes  of  conduct,  and  he 
takes  pleasure  in  so  doing — the  good  man 
as  well  as  the  evil.  Whoever  oversteps 
the  bounds  of  custom,  even  through  sheer 
egotism,  is  also  a  furtherer  of  human 
development  ;  without  sin  the  world 
would  never  have  evolved  a  civilisation  ; 
the  Fall  of  Man  was  nothing  more  than 
the  first  step  toward  the  historical  de- 
velopment of  the  human  race. 

This  leads  to  the  necessity  for  extracting 
from  custom  such  rules  as  must  prove 
advantageous  to  mankind,  and  this  collec- 
tion of  axioms — which  "  ought  to  be  " — 
becomes  law. 

The     distinction     between     right     and 

custom    was    an    important    step.       The 

relativity  of  custom  was  exposed  with  one 

stroke.   Many,  and  by  no  means  the  worst 

members     of     communities,     emancipate 

themselves  from  custom.   It  is  the  opening 

in  the  wall  through  which  the  progress  of 

humanity  may  pass.    Nor  do  the  demands 

of  right  remain  unalterable  and  unyielding. 

A    change    in    custom    brings    with   it    a 

_  change  in  right ;   certain  rules 

„.  ,  ^    '        of   conduct   gradually  become 

Right,  and      •      i    -    j         •        j.      ^.u  " 

j^      ..  isolated  owing  to  the  recession 

of  custom,  and  to  such  an  ex- 
tent that  they  lose  their  vitality  and  decay. 
And  as  new  customs  arise,  so  are  new 
principles  of  right  discovered.  In  this 
manner  an  alteration  in  the  one  is  a  cause 
of  change  in  the  other — naturally,  in 
conformity  with  the  degree  of  culture 
and  contemporary  social  relations.  Custom 
and  right  mutually  further  each  other, 
and  render  it  possible  for  men  to  adapt 
themselves  to  newly  acquired  conditions 
of  civilisation. 

Together  with  right  and  custom  a 
third  factor  appears — morality.  This  is 
a  comparatively  late  acquisition.  It,  too, 
contains  something  of  the  "  ought  to  be," 
not  because  of  the  social,  but  by  virtue 
of  the  divine  authority  or  order  based  on 
philosophical  conceptions.  Morals  vary, 
therefore,  as  laws  vary,  according  to 
peoples  and  to  times.  The  rules  of  morality 
form  a  second  code,  set  above  the  social 
law,  and  they  embody  a  larger  aggregate 
of  duties.  The  reason  for  this  is  that  men 
recognise  that  the  social  system  of  rules  for 
conduct  is  not  the  only  one,  that  it  is  only 
relative  and  cannot  include  all  the  duties 
of  human  beings,  and  that  over  and  beyond 
the  laws  of  society  ethical  principles  exist. 


THE    HIGHER    PROGRESS    OF    MANKIND 


Naturally  conflicts  arise  between  right 
and  morals,  and  such  struggles  lead  to 
further  development  and  progress. 

The  late  appearance  of  ideas  of  morality 
proves  that  ethical  considerations  were 
originally  foreign  to  the  god-concep- 
tions. The  spirits,  fetiches,  and  world- 
creators  of  different  beliefs  are  at  first 
neutral  so  far  as  morals  are  concerned  ; 
myths  and  legends  are  invented  partly 
from  creation  theories,  partly  from  historic 
data,  and  partly  through  efforts  of  the 
imagination.  In  primitive  beliefs  there  is 
no  trace  of  an  attempt  to  conceive  of 
deities  as  being  good  in  the  highest — or 
even  in  a  lower — sense  ;  and  it  would  not 
be  in  accordance  with  scientific  ethnology 
to  appraise,  or  to  wish  to  pass  judgment  on, 
religions  according  to  the  point  of  view 
of  ethics.  Not  until  the  importance  of 
morality  in  life  is  realised,  and  the 
profound  value  of  a  life  of  moral  purity 
recognised,  do  men  seek  in  their  religious 
beliefs  for  higher  beings  of  ethical  signifi- 
cance, for  morally  perfect  personalities 
among  the  gods. 

Different  elements  of  civilisation  vary 
greatly  in  their  development  in  different 
civilised  dis- 
tricts; one 
race  may  have  a 
greater  tendency 
toward  intellec- 
tual, another 
toward  material 
culture.  No  race 
has  approached 
the  Hindoos  in 
philosophic 
speculation,  yet 
they  are  as  chil- 
dren in  their 
knowledge  of 
natural  science. 
One  people  may 
develop  com- 
merce to  the 
highest  extent, 
another  poetr}' 
and  music,  a 
third  the  free- 
dom of  the  in- 
dividual. The 
language  of  the 
American  I  n  - 
dians  is  in  many  respects  richer  and  more 
elegant  than  English.  Therefore  nothing 
is  farther  from  the  truth  than  to  say  that, 
in  case  one  institution  of  civilised  life  is 


THE  EMBLEM  OF  A  TRIBE:  ALASKAN  INDIAN  TOTEM 
This  mysterious  "  totem  "  disting:uishes  a  family  or  tribe  of 
the    old    Hydah    Indians   and    is    erected   at    Wrangel    in    Alaska. 


found  to  exist  in  a  hunting  people,  another 
in  an  agricultural  race,  or  the  one  in  an 
otherwise  higher,  and  the  other  in  an  other- 
wise lower  nation  or  tribe,  the  institution 
in  question  must  have  reached  a  state  of 
perfection  corresponding  with  the  general 
development  of  the  people  possessing  it. 
According  to  this,  the  monogamic  uncivil- 
ised races  were  further  advanced  than  the 
polygamous  Aryans  of  India  and  the  Mo- 
hammedans ;  and  the  Polynesians,  with 
their  skill  in  the  industrial  arts  and  their 
dramatic  dances,  perhaps  in  a  higher  state 
of  civilisation  than  Europeans  ! 

Development  fulfils  itself  in  communi- 
ties of  men.  Except  in  a  human  aggre- 
gate it  cannot  come  to  pass  ;  for  the  germs 
of  development  which  are  brought  forth 
by  the  potentiated  activity  of  the  many 
may  exist  only  in  a  society  of  individuals. 
It  has  therefore  been  a  significant  fact 
that  from  the  very  beginning  men  have 
joined  together  in  social  aggregates,  partly 
on  account  of  an  instinctive  impulse, 
partly  because  of  the  necessity  for  self- 
defence.  Thus  it  came  about  that  primi- 
tive men  lived  together  in  wandering,  pre- 
datory hordes,  or  packs.  The  individuals 
were  bound  to 
one  another  very 
( losel}';  there  was 
no  private  life  ; 
and  the  sex- 
relationships  were 
prom  iscuous. 
Men  not  only 
dwelt  together 
in  groups,  but 
the  groups  them- 
selves assimilated 
with  one  another, 
inasmuch  as  mar- 
riages were  re- 
ciprocally entered 
into  by  them.  So 
far  as  we  are  able 
to  determine,  one 
of  the  earliest  of 
social  institutions 
was  that  of  group- 
marriage.  Indi- 
viduals did  not 
first  unite  in 
pairs,  and  then 
join  together  in 
groups — such  would  soon  have  fallen 
asunder  ;  on  the  contrary,  group-marriage 
itself  created  the  bond  that  held  the 
community    together  ;     the    most  violent 

211 


THE  BEGINNINGS  OF  MONARCHY  :  AFRICAN  CHIEF  SEATED  IN  STATE  AMONG  HIS  HEADMEN 
The  tribal  state  has  a  fixed  form  of  government.  The  chiefs  or  patriarchs  of  the  various  famiUes  stand  at  the 
head  of  affairs,  the  position  of  chief  being  either  hereditary  or  elective.  In  most  cases,  however,  it  is  determined  by 
a  combination  of  both  methods,  a  blood  descendant  being  chosen,  provided  he  is  able  to  give  proof  of  his  competence. 


in.stinct  of  mankind  not  only  united  the 
few  but  the  many,  indeed,  complete  social 
aggregates. 

Group-marriage  is  the  form  of  union 
established  by  the  association  of  two 
hordes,  or  packs,  according  to  which  the 
men  of  one  group  marry  the  women  of  the 
other  ;  not  a  marriage  of  individual  men 
with  individual  women,  but  a  promis- 
cu(.us  relationship,  each  man  of  one  group 
marrying  all  the  women  of  the  other 
group — at  least  in  theory — and  vice  versa  ; 
not  a  marriage  of  individuals,  but  of 
aggregates.  Certainly  with  such  a  sex- 
relationship  established,  sooner  or  later 
regulations  develop  from  within  the  com- 
munity, through  which  the  marital  rela- 
tionships of  individuals  are  adjusted  in  a 
consistent  manner ;  but  the  principle 
first  followed  was,  as  community  in  pro- 
perty, so  community  in  marriage  ;  and 
this  must  of  itself  lead  to  kinships 
entirely  different  from  those  with  which 
we  are  familiar. 

Group-marriage  was  closely  bound  up 
with  religious  conceptions  ;  single  hordes, 
or  packs,  considered  themselves  the  em- 

212 


bodiment  of  a  single  spirit.  And  since  at 
that  time  spirits  were  onl}'  conceived  of 
as  things  that  existed  in  nature,  the  horde 
felt  itself  to  be  a  single  class  of  natural  ob- 
ject— some  animal  or  plant,  for  example  ; 
and  the  union  of  one  pack  with  another 
was  analogous  to  the  union  of  one  animal 
with  another.  Each  group  believed  itself 
to  be  permeated  by  the  spirit  of  a  certain 
species  of  animal,  borrowed  its  name  thence 
and  the  animal  species  itself  was  looked 
upon  as  the  protecting  spirit.  The  ances- 
tral spirit  was  worshipped  in  the  animal, 
and  the  putting  to  death  or  injuring  of 
an  individual  of  the  species  was  a  serious 
offence. 

Such  a  belief  is  called  Totemism. 
"  Totem  " — a  word  borrowed  from  the 
language  of  the  Massachusetts  Indians — 
is  the  natural  object  or  animal  assumed 
as  the  emblem  of  the  horde  or  tribe,  and 
correspondingly  the  group  symbolised  by 
the  class  of  animal  or  natural  object  is 
called  a  Totem-group. 

This  belief  led  to  a  close  union  of  all  who 
were  partakers  of  the  spirit  of  the  same 
animal ;   it  also  strictly  determined  which 


THE    HIGHER    PROGRESS    OF    MANKIND 


groups  could  associate  with  one  another. 
And  as  the  totem-group  mimicked  the 
animal  in  its  dances,  and  fancied  itself  to 
be  possessed  by  its  spirit,  it  also  ordered 
the  methods  of  partaking  of  food,  and 
all  marriage,  birth,  and  death  ceremonies 
in  accordance  with  this  conception.  It  is 
said  that,  the  totem  being  exogamous, 
marriages  were  not  possible  within  the 
totem,  but  only  without  it.  Precisely 
so;  for  the  original  conception  was  not 
that  individuals  formed  unions,  but  that 
the  whole  totem  entered  the  marriage 
relationship ;  a  single  marriage  would  have 
been  considered  an  impossibihty. 

To  which  totem  the  children  belonged — 
to  the  mother's,  to  the  father's,  or  to  a 
third  totem — was  a  question  that  offered 
considerable  difficulty.  All  three  possi- 
bilities presented  themselves ;  the  last 
mentioned,  however,  only  in  case  the  child 
belonged  to  another  group,  a  sub-totem, 
and  in  that  event  its  descendants  could 
return  to  the  original  totem. 

Descent  in  the  male  'or  in  the  female 

line  occasioned  in  later  times  the  rise  of 

important    distinctions    between    nations. 

If  a  child  follow  the  mother's 

The  First      ^^^gj^^  ^e  speak  of  "  maternal 

,  *f    . .      kinship  "  ;  conversely,  of  "  pa- 
ofKmship     ^g^^^j    kmship"    in    case      of 

heredity  through  the  father.  Which  of  these 
is  the  more  primitive,  or  did  tribes  from 
the  very  first  adopt  either  one  or  the  other 
system,  thus  making  them  of  equal  anti- 
quity, is  a  much-vexed  question.  There  is 
reason  to  believe  that  maternal  kinship 
is  the  more  primitive  form,  and  that  races 
have  either  passed  with  more  or  less 
energy  and  rapidity  to  the  system  of 
descent  through  males,  or  have  kept  to  the 
original  institution  of  maternal  succession. 
There  are  many  peoples  among  whom 
both  forms  of  kinship  exist,  and  in  such 
instances  the  maternal  is  undoubtedly  the 
more  primitive  ;  from  this  it  appears  very 
probable  that  development  has  thus 
taken  place,  the  more  so  since  there  are 
traces  of  maternal  kinship  to  be  found  in 
races  whose  established  form  is  paternal. 
As  time  passed,  marriage  of  individuals 
developed  from  group-marriage  or  to- 
temism.  Such  unions  may  be  polygamous 
— one  man  having  several  wives — or  poly- 
androus — one  woman  having  several  hus- 
bands. Both  forms  have  been  represented 
in  mankind,  and,  indeed,  polygamy  is  the 
general  rule  among  all  races,  excepting 
Occidental   civilised  peoples.     The   form 


Growth 

of 

Marriage 


of  marriage  toward  which  civilisation  is 
advancing  is  certainly  monogamy  ;  through 
it  a  complete  individual  relationship  is 
established  between  man  and  wife  ;  and 
although  both  individualities  may  have 
independent  expression,  each  is  reconciled 
to  the  other  through  the  loftier  associa- 
tion of  both.  Nearly  associated  with 
monogamy  is  the  belief  in 
imion  after  death ;  it  arises 
from  the  religious  beliefs  pre- 
valent among  many  peoples. 
Among  other  races  there  is  at  least  the 
custom  of  a  year  of  mourning,  sometimes 
for  husband,  sometimes  for  wife,  often 
for  both. 

Marriage  of  individuals  has  developed  in 
different  ways  from  group  or  totem 
marriage  :  sometimes  it  was  brought  about 
through  lack  of  subsistence  occasioned  by 
many  men  dwelling  together  ;  sometimes 
it  arose  from  other  causes.  One  factor 
was  the  practice  of  wife-capture  :  whoever 
carried  off  a  wife  freed  her,  as  it  were,  from 
the  authority  of  the  community,  and 
established  a  separate  marriage  for  himself. 
Marriage  by  purchase  was  an  outcome  of 
marriage  by  capture  and  of  the  paying  of  an 
indemnity  to  the  relatives  of  the  bride  ; 
men  also  learned  to  agree  beforehand  as  to 
the  equivalent  to  be  paid.  The  practice  of 
acquiring  wives  by  purchase  developed  in 
various  directions,  especially  in  that  of 
trading  wives  and  in  the  earning  of  wives 
by  years  of  service.  Gradually  the  purchase 
became  merely  a  feigned  transaction  ;  and 
a  union  of  individuals  has  evolved — now 
sacerdotal,  now  civil  in  form — from  which 
every  trace  of  traffic  and  of  exchange  has 
disappeared. 

Thus  already  in  early  times  marriage  had 
become  ennobled  through  religion.  It  is 
a  widespread  idea  that  through  partaking 
of  food  in  common,  blood-brotherhood,  or 
similar  procedures,  a  mystic  communion 
of  soul  may  be  established  ;  and  in  case  of 
marriages  brought  about  by  the  mediation 
.  .  of  a  priesthood  the  priest   in- 

Rehgion  yokes  the  divine  consecration. 
i\no^  es  Marriage  is  thereby  raised  above 
Marriage  ^^^  ^^^^  ^^  profane  actions 
of  life  ;  it  receives  a  certain  guarantee  of 
permanency  ;  indeed,  in  many  cases,  by 
reason  of  the  mystic  communion  of  souls, 
it  is  looked  upon  as  absolutely  indissoluble. 
The  ownership  of  property  also  was 
originally  communistic,  and  the  idea  of 
individual  possession  has  been  a  gradual 
development.    The  idea  of  the  ownership 

213 


THE     IDEA    OF    MARRIAGE:     WEDDING    CUSTOMS    IN     MANY    LANDS 

In  countries  where  women  are  subservient  to  men  the  idea  of   niarriage  by  captu^^       by  cojupulsion  g-^-ls.^.  The 

Bedouin  bride  (^)  makes  a  pretence  of  escapmg  and  is  pursued  ^^Y  tl^bndegroom  and  h^s  ^cms^  e  .^  ^^^  .^ 

':l  ft^e-ct^'^fcSft^y.^T.^  ^-^-  ^'^^--  ^"^  ^-^^■"^' 

214 


THE    HIGHER    PROGRESS    OF    MANKIND 


of  land,  especially  when  developed  by 
agricultural  peoples,  is  of  a  communistic 
nature  ;  and,  from  common  possession, 
family  and  individual  ownership  gradually 
comes  into  being.  It  is  brought  about  in 
various  ways,  chiefly  through  the  division 
of  land  among  separate  families  :  at  first 
only  temporary,  held  only  until  the  time 
for  a  succeeding  division  arrives  ;  later, 
owned  in  perpetuity.  Nor  was  it  a  rare 
method  of  procedure  to  grant  land  to  any 
one  who  desired  to  cultivate  it — an  estate 
that  should  be  his  so  long  as  he  remained 
upon  it  and  cultivated  the 
soil,  but  which  reverted  to 
the  community,  on  his  leaving 
it.  There  gradually  developed 
a  constant  relationship  be- 
tween land  and  cultivator 
as  agriculture  became  more 
extended  and  lasting  improve- 
ments were  effected  on  the 
soil.  Land  became  the  per- 
manent property  of  the  in- 
dividual ;  it  also  became  an 
article  of  commerce. 

Ownership  of  movable  pro- 
perty even  was  at  first 
of  commvmistic  character. 
Clothing  and  weapons,  en- 
chantments effectual  for  the 
individual  alone,  such  as 
medicine-bags  or  amulets, 
were,  to  be  sure,  assigned  to 
individuals  in  very  early 
times ;  but  all  property  ob- 
tained by  labour,  the  products 
of  the  chase  or  of  fishing, 
originally  belonged  to  the 
community,  until  in  later  days 
each  family  was  allowed  to 
claim  the  fruits  of  its  own 
toil,  and  was  only  pledged  to 
share  with  the  others  under 
certain  conditions.  Finally, 
individuals  were  permitted  to 
retain  or  to  barter  property 
which  they  had  produced  by 
labour ;  and  exchange,  especially  exchange 
between  individuals,  attained  special  sig- 
nificance through  the  division  of  labour. 

The  individualisation  of  the  ownership 
of  movable  property  was  especially 
furthered  by  members  of  families  perform- 
ing other  labour,  outside  the  family,  in 
addition  to  their  work  within  the  family 
circle.  Although  the  fruit  of  all  labour 
accomplished  within  the  family  was  shared 
by  the  members  in  common,  the  results 


of  work  done  outside  became  the  property 
of  the  particular  individiial  who  had 
performed  the  labour.  Consequent  expan- 
sion of  the  conception  of  labour  led  rnen 
to  one  of  the  greatest  triumphs  of  justice, 
to  the  idea  of  establishing  individual  rights 
in  ideas  and  in  combinations  of  ideas,  to 
the  recognition  of  intellectual  or  imma- 
terial property — right  of  author  or  inven- 
tor—one of  the  chief  incentives  to  modern 
civilisation. 

On  the  other  hand,  individual  rights  in 
transactions  led  to  conceptions  concerning 


THE    CHURCH     AND    MARRIAGE:    A    WEDDING    SCENE 
In  very  early  times  marriage  had  assumed  a  religious  significance  and  came 
to  be  regarcled  among  the  sacred  as  opposed  to  the  secular  functions  of  Ufa. 

obligations  and  debts.  Exchange,  either 
direct  or  on  terms  of  credit,  brought  wilh 
it  duties  and  liabilities  for  which  originally 
the  persons  and  lives  of  the  individuals 
concerned  were  held  in  pledge,  until 
custody  of  the  body — which  also  included 
possession  of  the  corpse  of  a  debtor — 
was  succeeded  by  public  imprisonment 
for  debt,  and  finally  by  the_  mere  pledg- 
ing of  property,  imprisonment  for  debt 
having     been     abolished — a     course     of 

215 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


development    through    which     the    most 
varied  of  races  have  passed. 

The  relation  of  the  individual  to  his 
possessions  led  men  at  first  to  place  mov- 
able property  in  graves,  in  order  that  it 
might  be  of  service  to  the  departed  owner 
during  the  life  beyond  ;  hence  the  universal 
custom  of  burning  on  funeral  pyres  not 
only  weapons  and  utensils,  but 
*^    ^  animals,  slaves,  and  even  wives. 

p  In  later  times  men  were  satis- 

**  *"  ^  fied  with  symbolic  immolations, 
or  possessions  were  released  from  the 
ban  of  death  and  put  into  further  use. 
The  property  of  the  deceased  reverted  to 
his  family,  and  thus  the  right  of  inheritance 
arose.  There  was  no  right  of  inheritance 
during  the  days  of  communism  ;  on  the 
death  of  a  member  of  the  family  a  mere 
general  consolidation  of  property  resulted  ; 
with  individual  property  arose  the  rever- 
sion of  possessions  to  the  family  from 
which  they  had  been  temporarily  separated. 
Thus  property  either  reverted  to  the  family 
taken  as  a  whole,  or  to  single  heirs,  certain 
members  of  the  family  ;  hence  a  great 
variety  of  procedure  arose.  Up  to  the 
present  day  inheritance  b\^  all  the  children, 
or  inheritance  by  one  alone,  exists  in 
Eastern  Asia  as  m  Western  nations. 

In  like  manner  criminal  responsibility 
was  originally  collective  ;  the  family  or 
clan  was  held  responsible  for  the  actions 
of  all  its  individual  members  except  those 
who  were  renounced  and  made  outcasts. 
Such  methods  of  collective  surety  still 
exist  among  many  exceedingly  developed 
peoples ;  but  the  system  is  gradually 
dying  awa}^  the  tendency  being  for  the 
entire  responsibility  to  rest  upon  the 
individual  alone. 

The  state  is  a  development  of  tribal,  or 
patri-archal,  society.  The  tribal  group  is 
a  community  of  intermarried  families,  all 
claiming  descent  from  a  common  ancestor. 
From  tribal  organisation  the  principle  is 
developed  that  participation  in  the  com- 
_     .     .  miuiity  is  open  only  to  such 

ginning        individuals  as  belong  to  one  or 

^  ..        other  of  the  families  of  which 

Community  ,  ,       ,, 

it     IS     com]:)osed ;    and     the 

political  body  thus  made  up  of  individuals 
related  either  by  blood  or  through  marriage 
is  called  a  patriarchal,  or  tribal,  state. 
This  form  of  community  was  enlarged  even 
in  very  early  times,  advantage  being  taken 
of  the  possibility  of  adopting  strangers 
into  the  circle  of  related  families,  and  of 
amalgamating  with  them.    Still,  the  funda- 

2l6 


mental  idea  that  the  community  is  com- 
posed of  related  families  always  remains 
uppermost  in  the  minds  of  uncivilised 
peoples.  The  tribal  state  gradually 
develops  into  the  territorial  state.  The 
con-nection  of  the  community  with  a 
definite  region  becomes  closer  ;  strange 
tribes  settle  in  the  same  district  ;  they  are 
permitted  to  remain  provided  tribute  is 
paid  and  services  are  performed,  and  are 
gradually  absorbed  into  the  community, 
the  strangers  and  the  original  inhabitants — 
plebeians  and  patricians — united  together 
into  one  aggregate.  Thus  arises  the  con- 
ception of  a  state  which  any  man  may 
join  without  his  being  a  member  of  any 
one  of  the  original  clans  or  families. 

In  this  way  the  idea  of  a  state  becomes 
distinct  from  that  of  a  people  bound 
together  by  kinship,  the  latter  being 
especially  distinguished  by  a  certain  unity 
of  external  appearance,  custom,  character, 
and  manner  of  thought.  This  is  not 
intended  to  suggest  that  an  amalgamation 
of  different  race  elements  in  a  state  and  an 
assimilation  of  different  modes  of  thought 
and  of  feeling  are  not  desirable,  or  that  a 

^  .1  ,  spirit  analogous  to  the  sense 
Growth  of        'f  •,       ■  ^  1  r    .1 

.     la  ^^    unity  m    members   of    the 

f  St  t  ^'"^""'e  family  is  not  to  be  sought 
for  ;  such  a  condition  is  most 
likely  to  be  attained  if  a  certain  tribe  or 
clan  take  precedence  of  the  others,  as  the 
most  progressive,  to  which  the  various 
elements  of  the  people  annex  themselves. 
The  tribal  state  has  a  fixed  form  of 
government.  The  chiefs  or  patriarchs  of 
the  various  families  stand  at  the  head  of 
affairs,  the  position  of  chief  being  either 
hereditary  or  elective.  In  most  cases, 
however,  it  is  determined  by  a  combina- 
tion of  both  methods,  a  blood  descendant 
being  chosen  provided  he  is  able  to  give 
proof  of  his  competence.  In  addition 
there  is  often  the  popular  assembly.  In 
later  times  many  innovations  are  intro- 
duced. Passion  for  power  united  to  a 
strong  personality  often  leads  to  a  chief- 
tainship in  which  all  rights  and  privileges 
are  absorbed  or  united  in  the  person  of  one 
individual ;  so  that  he  appears  as  the 
possessor  of  all  prerogatives  and  titles, 
those  of  other  men  being  entirely  second- 
ary, and  all  being  more  or  less  dependent 
upon  his  will.  Religious  conceptions, 
esfiecially,  have  had  great  influence  in  this 
connection.  Nowhere  is  this  so  clearly 
shown  as  in  "  teknonymy,"  an  institution 
formerly  prevalent  in  the  South  Pacific 


"IN  THE  NA.ME  OF  JUSTICE":  SOME  OLD  METHODS  OF  TORTURE 

These  pictures  represent :    i,  Roman  gaolers  cutting  off  a  Christian's  ears.     a.  The  cangue  as  still  used  in  China, 
r  A  prisoner  on  the  rack  in  Mediaeval  England.     4.  Torture  of  the  Iron  Chair.     5.  The  ordeal  of  fire  and  branding. 


217 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


islands,  according  to  which  the  soul  of  the 
father  is  supposed  to  enter  the  body  of  his 
eldest  son  at  the  birth  of  the  latter,  and 
that  therefore,  immediately  from  his  birth, 
the  son  becomes  master,  the  father  con- 
tinuing the  management  of  affairs  merely 
as  his  proxy.  Other  peoples  have  avoided 
such  consequences  as  these  by  suj)i)osing 
the  child  to  be  possessed  by  the 
"  "  .  soul  of  his  grandfather,  thcre- 
Ch"  f  ""  ^^^^  naming  first-born  males 
after  their  grandfathers  instead 
of  after  their  fathers.  Another  outcome  of 
the  institution  of  chieftainship  is  the 
chaotic  order  of  affairs  which  rules  among 
man}^  peoples  on  the  death  of  the  chieftain, 
continuing  until  a  successor  is  seated  on  the 
throne — a  lawless  interval  of  anarchy 
followed  by  a  regency. 

The  power  of  a  chieftain  is,  however, 
usually  limited  by  class  rights  ;  that 
is,  by  the  rights  of  sub-chieftains  of 
especially  cUstinguished  families,  and  of 
the  popular  assembly,  among  which 
elements  the  division  of  }:)ower  and  of 
jurisdiction  is  exceedingly  varied.  These 
primitive  institutions  are  rude  prototypes 
of  future  varieties  of  coercive  govern- 
ment, of  kingship,  either  of  aristocratic 
or  of  republican  form,  in  which  the  primi- 
tive idea  of  chieftainship  as  the  absorption 
of  all  private  privileges  is  given  up,  and  in 
its  place  the  various  principles  of  rights 
and  duties  of  government  enter. 

Class-difterentigition  with  attendant 
privileges  and  prerogatives  is  especially 
developed  in  warlike  races,  and  in  nations 
which  must  be  ever  prejiared  to  resist 
the  attacks  of  enemies,  by  the  establish- 
ment of  a  militant  class.  The  militant 
class  occupies  an  intermediate  jjosilion 
between  the  governing,  ])riest,  and  scholar 
( lasses  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  industrial 
class — agriculturists,  craftsmen,  merchants 
—on  the  other.  Employment  in  warfare, 
necessary  discijiline,  near  association  with 
the  chieftain,  and  the  holding  of  fiefs  lor 
_        .  material  suj)port   give   to   this 

Growth  ,  '  '  '^.  -r, 

,.,.,..         class  a  unique  position.      Ihus 

of  Military      ,,  •  /         i         i  i   • 

-,.  the  warrior  castes  developed  in 

India,  the  feudal  and  military 
nol)ility  in  Ja))an,  the  nobility  in  (iermany, 
with  obligations  and  service  to  feudal 
superiors  and  to  the  Court.  This  system 
survives  for  many  years,  until  at  last 
leudal  tenure  gradually  disappears,  and 
its  attendant  prerogatives  are  swallowed 
up  by  all  classes  through  a  universal 
subjection  to  military  service  ;    although 

2i8 


even  yet  a  distinct  class  of  professional 
soldiers  remains  at  the  head  of  military 
affairs  and  operations,  and  will  continue 
to  do  so  as  long  as  there  is  a  possibility  of 
internal  or  external  warfare.  However, 
here  too  the  militant  class  is  absorbed  into 
a  general  body  of  officials.  Officials  are 
citizens  who  not  only  occupy  the  usual 
position  of  members  of  the  state,  but  to 
whom  in  addition  is  appointed  the  execu- 
tion of  the  life  functions  of  the  nation,  as  its 
organs  ;  in  other  words,  such  functions  as 
are  peculiar  to  the  civic  organisation  in 
contradistinction  to  the  general  functions 
exercised  and  actions  performed  by  indi- 
vidual citizens  as  independent  units. 
Officialism  includes  to  a  special  degree 
duty  to  its  calling  and  to  the  public  trust, 
and  there  are  also  special  privileges 
granted  to  officials  within  the  sphere 
appointed  for  them. 

In  a  society  governed  by  a  chieftain,  as 
well  as  in  a  monarchy,  there  is  a  jwpular 
assembly  or  consultative  body  ;  either  an 
unorganised  meeting  of  individuals,  or  an 
organised  convention  of  estates  founded 
on  class  right.  A  modern  development, 
that  certainly  had  its  proto- 
Thc  Birth     ^yp^  .^  ^^^  patriarchal  state,  is 

1  ,.  ^  the  representative  assembly. 
Parliaments  ^    ,  ,  r       •    j-      j      i 

an    assembly     of     individuals 

chosen  to  represent  the  people  in  place  of 
the  popular  gathering.  The  English 
Government,  with  its  representative  legis- 
lative bodies,  is  a  typical  example  in 
modern  civilisation. 

One  of  the  chief  problems  encountered 
not  only  in  a  society  ruled  by  a  chieftain, 
Init  also  in  states  of  later  devel()j)ment, 
whether  governed  by  a  potentate  or  by 
an  aristocracy,  is  the  relation  of  tem- 
poral to  sjnritual  power.  Sometimes  both 
are  united  in  the  head  of  the  state,  as  in 
the  cases  of  the  Incas  of  Peru  and  of  the 
Caliphate.  Sometimes  the  spiritual  head 
is  distinct  and  separate  from  the  temporal ; 
frequently  the  two  forces  are  nearly  asso- 
ciated, a  member  of  the  imperial  family 
being  chosen  for  the  office  of  high-priest, 
as  among  the  Aztecs.  Often,  however,  the 
two  functions  are  comjiletely  indej^endent 
of  each  other,  as  among  many  African 
races,  the  medicine-man  occupying  a  posi- 
tion entirely  independent  of  the  chieftain. 
Such  separation  may,  of  course,  lead  to 
friction  and  civil  war  ;  it  may  also  become 
an  element  furthering  to  civilisation,  a 
source  of  new  ideas,  opening  the  way  to 
alliances    between    nations,    and    setting 


THE    HIGHER    PROGRESS    OF    MANKIND 


bounds  to  the  tyranny  of  individuals,  as 
exemplified  in  the  relation  of  the  Papacy 
to  the  Holy  Roman  Emj)ire. 

The  form  of  state  in  which  the  functions 
of  government  are  exercised  by  a  chieftain 
contributes  greatly  to  state  control  and 
enforcement  of  justice.  The  realisation  of 
right  had  been  from  the  first  a  social 
function  ;  but  its  enforcement 
was  incumbent  on  the  unit 
groups  of  individuals  (families 
or  tribes  bound  together  by 
friendship).  The  acquisition  by  the  state 
of  the  power  to  dispense  justice  and  to 
make  and  enforce  law  is  one  of  the  greatest 
events  of  the  world's  history.  The  idea 
of  all  right  being  incorporated  in  the 
chieftain  (and  social  classes)  played  an 
important  part  in  bringing  about  this 
condition  of  affairs  ;    for  as  soon  as  this 


State  Justice 
a  Momentous 
Step  Forward 


typical  of  the  effect  of  the  curse  of  God. 
Already  in  primitive  times  religion  led  to 
a  strange  idea  of  justice — secret  societies 
consecrated  by  the  deity  took  upon  them- 
selves the  function  of  enforcing  right, 
instituting  reigns  of  terror  in  their  dis- 
tricts, maintaining  order  in  society,  and 
claiming  authorisation  from  the  god  with 
whose  spirit  they  were  permeated.  Later, 
influenced  by  all  these  causes,  the  social 
aggregate  took  over  the  control  of  justice. 
It  was  already  considered  to  be  the 
upholder  of  right,  the  servant  of  the  deity, 
the  maintainer  of  public  peace,  the  dis- 
penser of  atoning  sacrifices,  etc.  ;  and  so 
the  various  elements  conceived  of  as 
justice,  which  had  previously  been  dis- 
tributed among  the  single  families,  tribes, 
associations,  and  societies,  were  combined, 
and  placed  under  state  control. 


AN     EARLY     EGYPTIAN     REPRESENTATION     OF    JUSTICE  Mansell 

"  The  Judgment  of  the  Dead  "  as  illustrated  by  innumerable  paintings  on  the  walls  of  Egyptian  temples  and  tombs. 


conception  receives  general  acceptance, 
the  chieftain,  and  with  him  the  state, 
become  interested  in  the  preservation  and 
enforcement  of  justice,  even  in  its  lower 
forms  in  the  common  rights  of  the  sub- 
jects. On  the  other  hand,  not  only  the 
interests  of  chieftainship,  but  also  those 
of  agriculture  and  commerce,  are  furthered 
by  the  preservation  of  internal  peace  ; 
and  internal  peace  calls  for  state  control 
of  justice  and  enforcement  of  law. 

Moreover  the  religious  element  worked 
to  the  same  end.  Wickedness  was  held 
to  be  an  injury  to  the  deity,  whose  anger 
would  be  visited  upon  the  entire  land — a 
conception  that  lasted  far  into  the  Middle 
Ages,  and  according  to  which  the  fate  of 
Sodom   and   Gomorrah   was   held   to   be 


Certain  forms  for  the  dispensation  of 
justice,  judging  of  crimes,  and  determining 
of  punishments  were  developed.  Thus  arose 
the  different  forms  of  judicial  procedure, 
which  for  a  long  time  bore  a  religious 
character.  The  deity  was  called  upon  to 
decide  as  to  right  and  wrong — divinity  in 
_  „       the    form    of    natural   forces. 

_*  "^  *"      .   Hence   the   judgments  of  God 
jj,.  .  ^  °    through    trial    by   water,    fire. 

Religion  .       ®  ,  -^  ,       '  ' 

poison,  serpents,  scales,  or — 
especially  in  Germany  during  the  Middle 
Ages — combat,  or  decision  by  the  divining 
eye,  that  was  closely  allied  to  the  so-called 
trial  by  hazard.  A  peculiar  variety  of 
ordeal  Js  that  of  the  bier,  according  to 
which  the  body  of  a  murdered  man  is 
called   into   requisition,   the  soul   of   the 

219 


I        j^^-: 


Wllm^: 


-'  '  k '  t 


i 

- 1              "^ 

^- 

iK^^ 

i 

^^k    ,                     "*^;^^ 

WW^ 

r 

221 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


victim  assisting  in  the  discovery  of  the 
murderer.     Ordeals  are  undergone  some- 
times  by   one   individual,   sometimes    by 
two.    An  advance  in  progress  is  the  curse, 
which  takes  the  place  of  the  ordeal,  the 
curse  of  God  being  called  down  upon  an 
individual  and  his  family  in  case  of  wrong- 
doing or  of  perjury.     The  curse  rnay  be 
uttered  by  an  individual  in  co- 
operation with  the  members  of 
.     ^  families.  Thus  arise  ordeals  by 

invocation  and  by  oath  with 
compurgators.  Originally  a  certain  period 
of  time  was  allowed  to  pass — a  month, 
for  example — for  the  fulfilment  of  the 
curse.  In  later  times,  whoever  took 
the  oath — oath  of  innocence — was  held 
guiltless.  Witnesses  succeeded  to  con- 
jurers ;  divining  looks  were  replaced 
by  circumstantial  evidence  ;  and,  instead 
of  a  mystic,  a  rational  method  of  obtaining 
testimony  was  adopted.  The  develop- 
ment was  not  attained  without  certain 
attendant  abuses;  and  the  abolition  of 
ordeal  by  God  was  among  many  peoples 
— notably  the  inhabitants  of  Eastern  Asia, 
the  American  Indians,  and  the  Germans 
of  the  Middle  Ages — succeeded  by  the 
introduction  of  torture.  In  many  lands 
torture  stood  in  close  connection  with  the 
judgment  of  God  ;  in  others  it  originated 
either  directly  or  indirectly  in  slavery. 
According  to  the  method  of  obtaining 
evidence  by  torture,  the  accused  was 
forced  through  physical  pain  to  disclosures 
concerning  himself  and  his  companions, 
and,  in  case  he  himself  were  considered 
guilty,  to  a  confession.  However  barbarous 
and  irrational,  this  system  was  employed 
in  Latin  and  Germanic  nations  excepting 
England,  until  the  eighteenth  century,  in 
some  instances  even  until  the  nineteenth. 
Judgment  was  first  pronounced  in  the 
name  of  God  ;  in  later  times,  in  the  name 
of  the  people  or  of  the  ruler  who  appeared 
as  the  representative  of  God.  The  prin- 
ciples of  justice,  the  validity  of  which  at 
Th    SI  ^^^^  depends  upon  custom,  are 

„  ....  in  later  times  proclaimed  and 

Building  upr-,  ^j  r/-j 

of  La  fixed   as    commands    of    God. 

Thus  systems  of  fixed  right 
come  into  being  first  in  the  form  of  sacred 
justice,  then  as  commands  of  God,  and 
finally  as  law.  Law  is  a  conception  of 
justice  expressed  in  certain  rules  and  prin- 
ciples. Originally  there  were  no  laws ;  the 
standard  for  justice  was  furnished  to  each 
individual  by  his  own  feelings ;  only  iso- 
lated   cases    were    recorded.      As    time 

222 


advanced,  and  great  men  who  strove  to 
bring  about  an  improvement  in  justice 
arose  above  the  generality  of  mankind  ; 
when  the  ruling  class  became  differentiated 
from  the  other  classes  ;  when  it  was  found 
necessary  to  root  out  certain  popular  cus- 
toms— then,  in  addition  to  the  original 
collection  of  precedents,  there  arose  law  of 
a  higher  form  :  law  that  stood  above  prece- 
dent, that  altered  custom,  and  opened  up 
new  roads  to  justice.  Great  codes  of  law 
have  not  been  compilations  only ;  they 
have  led  justice  into  new  paths.  Originally 
a  law  was  looked  upon  as  an  inviolable  com- 
mand of  God,  as  unalterable  and  eternal ; 
its  interpretation  alone  was  earthly  and 
transitory.  As  years  passed,  men  learned 
to  recognise  that  laws  themselves  were 
transitory  ;  and  it  became  a  principle 
that  later  enactments  "could  alter  earlier 
rules.  The  relations  of  later  statutes  to 
already  established  law,  and  how  the  laws 
of  different  nations  influence  one  another, 
are  difficult,  much- vexed  questions  for  the 
solution  of  which  special  sciences  have  de- 
veloped— transitory  and  international  law. 
Judgment  and  law  are  intimately  concerned 
with  justice,  the  conception 
of  right  as  evolved  from  the 
double  action  of  life  and  cus- 
tom. To  this  development 
of  justice  is  united  an  endeavour  of  the  state 
or  government  not  only  to  further  welfare 
by  means  of  the  creation  and  administra- 
tion of  law,  but  also  to  take  under  its  con- 
trol civilising  institutions  of  all  sorts. 
This  was  originally  a  feature  of  justice 
itself ;  certain  practices  inimical  to  civilisa- 
tion were  interdicted  and  made  punish- 
able offences.  Already  in  the  Middle  Ages 
systems  of  police  played  a  great  part  among 
governmental  institutions,  especially  in 
the  smaller  states.  Subsequently  the  idea 
was  developed  that  not  only  protection 
through  the  punishment  of  crime,  but  also 
superintendence  of  and  promotion  of  the 
public  weal,  should  be  administered  by  law; 
and  thus  the  modern  state  developed  with 
its  policy  of  national  welfare.  With  this 
arose  the  necessity  for  a  sharper  distinction 
to  be  drawn  between  justice  and  the  various 
actions  of  an  administration  ;  and  thus  in 
modern  times  men  have  come  to  the  system 
— based  on  Montesquieu — of  the  separation 
of  powers  and  independence  of  justice. 

Justice  varies  according  to  the  develop- 
ment of  civilisation,  and  according  to  the 
function  that  it  must  perform  in  this 
development ;    in  like  manner  every  age 


Evolution 
of  the 
Modern  State 


THE    HIGHER    PROGRESS    OF    MANKIND 


creates  its  own  material  and  spiritual 
culture.  Every  poet  is  a  poet  of  his  own 
time. 

The  notion  of  natural  right,  however 
unhistorical  it  was  in  itself,  characterised 
a  period  of  transition  in  so  far  as  it  enabled 
men  to  form  a  historical  conception — a  con- 
ception of  what  might  be  :  for,  by  con- 
trasting actual  with  ideal  justice,  we  are 
enabled  to  esca'pe  the  bonds  of  the  opinions 
of  a  particular  time,  and  to  look  upon  such 
opinions  and  views  objectively  and  in- 
dependently. Yet  it  is  certainly  a  foolish 
proceeding  to  consider  an  ideal,  deduced 
principally  from  conceptions  and  opinions 
of  the  present,  to  be  a  standard  by  which 
to  measure  the  value  of  historical  events 
of  all  times,  sitting  in  judgment  over  the 
great  names  of  the  past  with  the  air  of  an 
inspector  of  morals.  The  office  of  the  his- 
torian as  judge  of  the  dead  is  quite  differ- 
ently constitut'^d.  Every  age  must  be 
judged  in  accordance  with  the  relation 
which  it  bears  to  the  totality  of  develop- 
ment ;  and  every  historical  personage  is 
to  be  looked  upon  as  a  bearer  of  the  spirit 
of  his  day,  as  a  servant  of  the  ideas  of  his 

_.  ,  _,,  time.  Thus  it  is  quite  as 
Right  Way  ,  ^  1 

*  .  wrong    to    pronounce     moral 

lO    V  lew  ,  1  r      1    * 

„.  ^  censure   on   the  men    ol    his- 

History  ,  ...  ,       .      , 

tory,  as  it  is  wrong  to  judge 
an  era  merely  according  to  its  good  or 
evil  characteristics.  A  period  must  be 
e^;timated  according  to  what  it  has 
either  directly  or  indirectly  accomplished 
for  mankind. 

There  are  common  factors  of  civilisation 
shared  by  nations  themselves,  through 
which  many  contradictions  disappear. 
The  religious  civilisatio-is  of  Christian- 
ity, Mohammedanism.  Judaism,  Buddh- 
ism and  Confucianism  have  been  the 
determining  factors  of  the  intellectual 
and  emotional  life,  even  influencing  the 
course  of  events,  in  vast  regions.  And 
thus  it  is  also  comprehensible  that  in 
the  judicial  life  of  nations  there  is  an 
endeavour  for  a  closer  approach,  and 
also  the  existence  of  equalising  tendencies. 
In  spite  of  countless  variations  in  detail, 
there  is  a  certain  unity  of  law  in  the 
entire  Mohammedan  world  ;  and  although 
the  hope  of  establishing  the  unity  of 
Roman  canonistic  law  over  the  whole 
of  Christendom  has  not  been  realised 
none  the  less  it  was  a  tremendous  idea  : 
that  of  a  universal  empire  founded  on  the 
Roman  law  of  the  imperators,  and  placed 
under  the  rule  of  the  German  emperor,  thus 


ensuring  the  continuance  of  the  law  of  the 
Roman  people — an  idea  that  swayed  the 
intellects  of  the  Middle  Ages  up  to  the 
fourteenth,  even  to  the  fifteenth  century, 
and  according  to  which  the  emperor  would 
have  been  the  head  of  all  Europe,  the  other 
sovereigns  merely  his  vassals  or  fief-holders. 
This  idea,  once  advocated  by  such  a 
great  spirit  as  that  of  Dante, 
onccp  ion      j^^^^^  ^-j^.^  many  others,  passed 

»i  •.  J  »ir    I J  into     oblivion  ;     and    in    its 
United  World     ,  ,  .'  ^, 

place  has  arisen  the  con- 
ception of  independent  laws  of  nations. 
Yet  the  original  idea  has  had  great 
influence  :  it  has  led  to  a  close  union  of 
Christian  peoples  ;  it  opened  a  way  for 
Roman  law  to  become  universal  law, 
although,  to  be  sure,  English  law,  com- 
pletely independent  of  that  of  Rome, 
has  grown  to  unparalleled  proportions  as 
a  universal  system,  entirely  by  reason  of 
the  marvellous  success  of  the  English 
people  as  colonists.  Likewise  international 
commerce  will  of  itself  lead  to  a  unifica- 
tion of  mercantile,  admiralty,  copyright, 
and  patent  law. 

Then  the  idea  of  an  international  league 
must  develop,  arising  from  the  idea  of  the 
unity  of  Christian  nations.  We  have 
advanced  a  great  distance  beyond  the 
time  when  every  foreigner  was  con- 
sidered an  enemy,  and  when  all  foreign 
phenomena  were  looked  upon  as  strange 
or  with  antipathy.  Rules  for  inter- 
national commerce  are  developed ;  state 
alliances  are  entered  into  for  the  further- 
ance of  common  interests  and  for  the 
preservation  of  peace.  Many  tasks 
which  in  former  times  would  have 
been  executed  by  the  empire  are  now 
undertaken  by  international  associations  ; 
and  the  time  for  the  establishment  of 
international  courts  of  arbitration  for  the 
adjustment  of  differences  between  states 
is  already  approaching. 

It  also  seems  probable  that  states  will 

unite     to     form     political     organisations, 

^  wholly  or  partially  renouncing 

Common  xt,    •  ^  -i-  ti 

,  .        .      -  their  separate  Tjositions.     Ihus 
Interests  of         ..         ^     -n    i  ^         i    . 

j^     . .    .  nations  will   be  replaced  by  a 

federal  state,  and  a  multitude 

of  unifying  ideas  which  would  otherwise 

be  accomplished  with  difficulty  will  come 

to  easy  realisation.      Federal  states  were 

already  in  existence  during  the  times  of 

patriarchal   communities  :     an    especially 

striking  example  is  that  of  the  admirably 

constituted    federation    of    the    Iroquois 

nations. 

223 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


The  vision  of  no  man  may  pierce 
through  to  the  ultimate  end  of  the  pro- 
cesses of  history,  and  to  advance  hypotheses 
is  a  vain  endeavour — quite  as  vain  as  it 
would  be  to  expect  Plato  to  have  foretold 
the  life  of  modern  civilisation  or  the  im- 
perial idea  of  mediaeval  times,  or  Dante  to 
have  foreseen  modern  industrialism  or  the 

,,  .  ,  character  of  industrial  peoples. 
Universal         i-     j  .    ■ 

_,  .    .      1 0-day  we    are  more  certam 

,  ^  ,,  than   ever  that  no  process  of 

of  Culture  ,        ,  ,      .  ^        .        , 

development,  however  simple 

it  may  have  been,  has  ever  taken  place 
according  to  a  fixed  model ;  all  develop- 
ments have  had  their  own  individualities 
according  to  place  and  to  time.  Thus  we 
must  forego  discussion  of  the  future. 

However,  there  is  another  point  of  view. 
Development  of  nations  as  well  as  of 
individuals  leads  either  to  progress  or  to 
decay.  No  people  may  hope  to  live 
eternally ;  and  how  many  acquisitions 
already  gained  will  be  lost  in  the  future  it 
is  impossible  to  say.  If  a  nation  declines, 
it  either  becomes  extinct  or  is  annihilated 
by  another  state  ;  it  becomes  identitied 
with  the  newer  nation,  and  disappears 
with  its  own  character  ;  thus  its  civilisa- 
tion may  also  disappear.  This  is  a  serious 
possibility.  It  is  the  Medusa  head  of  the 
world's  history  which  we  must  face — and 
without  stiffening  to  stone. 

There  is  one  truth,  however,  the  know- 
ledge of  which  fills  us  with  hope  for  the 
future  :  it  is  the  fact  that  the  results  of 
development  and  civilisation  are  often 
transfused  from  one  people  to  another, 
so  that  a  given  development  need  not 
start  again  from  the  very  beginning. 
This  is  owing  to  the  capacity  which  races 
have  for  absorbing  or  borrowing  civilisa- 
tions. Absorption  of  culture  is  by  no 
means  universal  ;  it  does  not  prevent  the 
occasional  disappearance  of  civilisation, 
for  every  civilisation  has  before  it  at  least 
the  possibility  of  death.  Nevertheless  the 
transmission  and  assimilation  of  culture 
...  ,   is    constantly     taking     place. 

„      ,  Ihere     are    various    ways    in 

Peoples  on  i  ■    u      ■*.  i         u  u^ 

One  Another  ^'i'^l^'^  '\  ^^^y  ^'^  brought 
al)out.  A  conquering  nation 
may  bring  its  own  civilisation  with  it  to  the 
conquered  ;  culture  is  often  forced  upon 
the  latter  by  coercive  measures.  The  con- 
querors may  acquire  culture  from  the 
vanquished ;  or  assimilation  of  culture 
may  come  about  without  the  subjection 
of  a  people,  through  the  unconscious 
adoption  of  external  customs  and  internal 
324 


modes  of  thought.  Finally,  culture  may 
be  borrowed  consciously  from  one  nation 
by  another,  the  one  state  becoming  con- 
vinced of  the  outward  advantages  and  inner 
significance  of  the  foreign  civilisation. 

In  this  way  the  problem  of  develop- 
ment becomes  very  complicated  ;  many 
institutions  of  vanished  races  thus  con- 
tinue to  live  on.  Certainly  the  race  that 
acquires  a  foreign  civilisation  must,  among 
other  things,  be  so  constituted  in  its 
motives  and  aspirations  as  to  lose  the  very 
nerves  of  its  being,  its  very  stability,  in 
order  that,  intoxicated  with  the  joy  of  a 
new  life,  all  traces  of  its  past  existence  may 
be  allowed  to  break  up  and  disappear. 
On  the  other  hand,  many  a  promising 
germ  of  culture  possessed  by  a  vigorous 
people  may  come  to  grief,  owing  to  the 
influence  of  acquisitions  from  without. 
But,  in  return,  a  race  that  knows  how  to 
assimilate  foreign  culture  may  obtain  a 
civilisation  of  such  efficiency  as  it  would 
never  before  have  been  capable  of  attain- 
ing, by  reason  of  the  fact  that  its  power 
is  established  on  a  recently  acquired  basis, 
and  because  it  has  been  spared  a  multitude 
of  faltering  experiments. 
rogress  Civilisation   may   be    mutu- 

P     J,  ally   obtained    from  reciprocal 

action,  nations  both  giving  and 
taking.  Such  a  relation  naturally  arises 
when  states  enter  into  intercourse  with 
one  another,  when  they  have  become 
acquainted  with  one  another's  various 
institutions  and  are  able  to  recognise  the 
great  merits  of  foreign  organisations  and 
the  defects  of  their  own.  Especially  the 
world's  commerce,  in  which  every  nation 
wishes  to  remain  a  competitor,  compels 
towards  mutual  acceptance  of  custom  and 
law  ;  no  nation  desires  to  be  left  behind  ; 
and  each  discovers  that  it  will  fall  to  the 
rear  unless  it  borrow  certain  things  from 
the  others.  Such  reciprocal  action  will 
be  the  more  effective  the  more  like  nations 
are  to  one  another,  the  better  they  under- 
stand each  other,  and  the  more  often  they 
succeed  not  only  in  adopting  the  outward 
forms,  but  in  absorbing  the  jirinciples  of 
foreign  institutions  into  their  own  beings. 

Thus  we  may  hope  that  even  if  the 
nations  of  to  day  decay  and  disappear, 
the  labour  of  the  world's  progress  will  not 
be  lost  ;  it  will  constantly  reappear  in  new 
communities  which  may  rejoice  in  that 
for  which  we  have  striven,  and  which  we 
have  acquired  by  the  exertion  of  our  own 
powers,  Joseph  Kohler 


THE  SEVEN  WONDERS  OF  ANCIENT  CIVILISATION 


BB 


W 


By    HAROL 

The  Temple  of  Diana  at  Ephesus  speaks: 
The  sun   standeth    in   the   high  places   of  the 

mountains, 
Full  of  brightness  and  mirth  is  the  dawn. 
But  my  loveliness  is  not  shamed  by  him, 
Neither  is  it  diiimied  ; 
For,  behold  ;ind  consider  well,  the  sun  is  not 

more  than  thought.  [shall  be  : 

That   which    yesterday    I    was,    to-morrow    I 
I  live  :   I  wear  u  pon  my  brow  the  moving  ages 

and  the  spirit  of  man, 
And  genius,  and  art : 
These  things  are  more  wonderful  than  the  sun. 


Senseless  is  the  stone  in  the  earth,  [night  ; 

And  the  granite  is  not  more  than  the  formless 

The  alabaster  knoweth  not  the  dayspring. 

Porphyry  is  blind, 

And  marble  is  without  understanding ; 

Bui  let  Ctesiphon  pass, 

Or  Daedalus,  or  Chresiphon, 

And  fix  his  eyes,  full  of  the  divine  flash. 

Upon  the  ground  where  the  rocks  slumber, 

And   lo,  they  awake,    they   tremble,    they   are 

stricken  with  understanding  ;  [eyelid, 

The  granite,   lifting  some  vague  and  troubled 
Struggleth  to  behold  his  master  : 
The  rock  feeletli  within  himself  the  breathing 

of  the  unhewn  statue,  [darkness. 

The  marble  stirs  in  the  midnight  of  his 
Because  that  he  is  aware  of  the  soul  of  a  man. 
The  buried  alabaster  desireth  to  rise  up  from 

the  grave. 
Earth  shudders,  it  trembleth  violently. 
It  feels  upon  it  the  will  of  a  man  ; 
And   behold,    beneath   the   gaze   of  him   who 

passeth  with  creation  in  his  eyes. 
From  the  deeps  of  the  sacred  earth 
The  suljlime  palace  comes  forth  and   mounts 

upward. 

When  she   has   made  an   end,  the   Gardens  of 
Babylon  sing  their  laud  of  Semiramis : 
Glory  to  Semiramis,  [bridges 

Who  reared  us  up  on  the  arches  of  the  great 
Whose  span  outraceth  lime. 
This  great  ([ueen  was  wont  to  delight  herself 

btrneath  our  floating  branches  ; 
In  the  midst  ol  the  ruin  of  two  empires 
She  laughed  in  our  groves, 
She  was  happy  in  our  green  places ; 
She  conquered  the  kings  of  far  countries. 
And    when    the    man    had    humbled    himself 
Lo,  she  would  go  upon  her  way,       [before  her. 
She  would  come  hither. 

She  would  sigh  gleefully  under  our  branches, 
Very  pleasantly   would   she  lie  down   on  the 

skins  of  panthers. 

And  alter  the  Gardens  have  sung,  there  is  heard 
the  voice  of  the  Mausoleum  of  Halicamassus  : 
I   am   the   monument   of   a   heart   that   knew 

itself  infinite  ; 
Death  is  not  death  beneath  my  dome  of  blue, 
Beneath  my  dome,  death  is  victory, 
Death  is  lite.  [precious  stone 

Here    hath    death    so   much   of    gold    and    of 
That  he  boasteth  himself  thereof ; 
Behold,  1  am  the  burial  which  is  a  pageant, 
And  the  sepulchre  which  is  a  palace. 

Then,  like  a  great  thunder,  the  voice  of  Jupiter : 
I  am  the  Olympian, 
The  lord  of  the  muses  ; 

All  that  which  hath  life,  or  breath,  or  love,  or 
thought,  or  growth. 


of  Victor  Hugo 

D     BEGBIE 

Groweth,  thinketh,  liveth,  loveth,  and  breatheih 
in  me.  _  [feet 

The  incense  of  supplication  which  rises  to  my 

Trembles  with  terror  and  affright  ; 

The  slope  of  my  brow  doth  touch  the  a,\is  of 
the  world  ; 

The  tempest  speaketh  with  me  before  he 
troubles  the  waters  ; 

I  endure  without  age  ; 

I  exist  without  pang  ; 

Unto  me  one  thing  only  is  impossible — 

To  die. 

After  Jupiter,  from  the  island  of  Pharos  sounds 
the  voice  of  the  great  Lighthouse : 
In  the  midst  of  the  mighty  waters 
I  tarry  for  the  ceasing  of  the  centuries. 
Sostratus  the  Cnitlian  built  me. 
He  built  me  that  there  might  be  thrown 
Across  the  rolling  waters, 
And    through    the     darkness     where    lurketh 

destruction, 
A  rebuke  to  the  lovely  vanity  of  the  stars. 

After  the  Lighthouse,  the  Colossus  at  Rhodes : 
I  am  the  true  Lighthouse. 
Rhodes  lies  at  my  threshold. 
Before  the  steadfast  gaze  of  my  un.sleeping  eves 
Winter  maketh  white  the  mountains.       [mists; 
I    behold    the  deep  waters  in  their  cavernous 
I  am  the  sentinel  whom  none  Cometh  to  relieve  ; 
I  look  forth  upon  the  co  "ing  of  the  night, 
And  upon  the  coming  of  the  dawn 
I  behold  the  lifting  of  the  mists, 
I  behold  the  terror  of  the  sea. 
With  the  immense  dreaming  of  Colossus. 

And  last  speaks  the  Pyramid  of  Cheops : 
The  desert,  spread  like  a  table,  lieth  beneath 

my  foundations. 
Lo,  from  some  mysterious  gateway  of  the  night 
I  lift  unto  heaven  my  stair  of  terror. 
And  out  of^the  darkness  itself  seemeth  it  that  I 

am  builded. 
The  sphinxes   dropped    their    broods    in    the 

caverns;  [sighing; 

The    centuries   went    by ;    the   winds    passed 
And  Cheops  said  again  :   I  am  eternal  ! 

Then,    after    a    profound    silence,   the    creeping 
worm  of  the  sepulchre  lifteth  up  his  voice  : 

I   say  unto    you    Buildings   that  ye   rise,   and 

arise  still  more  ! 
Set  ye  up  a  stone  above  a  stone. 
Above  cities  lift  yourselves  up,  O  temples ! 
Lift  up  yourselves,  like  Babel  ! 
Column  r.bove  column  ; 
Higher  and  yet  higher  ; 
Let  palaces  arise  upon  the  hollow  places 
And   let   nothingness   be    fastened    upon    the 

foundations  of  night ! 

Ye  are  like  smoke, 

Therefore  exalt  yourselves  with  the  clouds! 

Set  not  an  end  to  your  boasting  ! 

Mount  up,  mount  up,  for  ever  !  [wait. 

Lo,  in  the  dust  beneath  your  feet  I  crawl  and 

Small  am  I,  O  mighty  ones, 

And  yet  I  say  unto  you, 

From  the  going  down  of  the  sun  to  his  rising  up, 

From  all  the  corners  of  the  earth. 

Everything  which  haih  substance  and  which 

The  thing  which  is  sorrowful,  [hath  being. 

And  the  thing  which  is  glad. 

Descend  unto  me.  [for  ever, 

And  I  only  have  strength,  and  I  only  endure 

For  behold,  I  am  death. 


325 


THE  HANGING  GARDENS  OF  BABYLON 


The  Hanging:  Gardens  have  been  attributed  to  Semiramis.  although  Nebuchadnezzar  is  also  said  to  have  built  them 
to  please  one  of  his  wives,  who  coming;  from  a  hillv  couut.y  to  Baby. on  in  the  midst  of  a  vast  and  barren  plain 
siifhed  for  some  reminder  of  the  leafy  b-auty  of  her  old  home.  The  gardens,  built  in  the  form  of  a  ^auar^ 
extending  some  700  feet  on  each  side,  rose  to  a  great  heigiit  in  terrace  uuon  terrace  supported  by  massive 
pillars.     A  remarkable  hydraulic  system  kept  their  multitudinous  plants   and  trees  in  almost  perpetual  verdure. 

226 


^ 


THE    PYRAMIDS    OF    EGYPT 

For  six  thousand  years  the  Pyramids  have  thrown  their  shadow  across  the  sands  of  Egypt.  The  stone  of  which  they 
are  bint  wmdd  make  a  great  wall  from  Cairo  to  New  York;  the  white  marble  which  covered  them  would  have  built 
more  k  ne's  palaces  than  Egypt  has  had  need  of.  The  building  of  the  Great  Pyramid  emp  oyed  ,00,000  slaves  for  30  years, 
Sh^g^eomerical  perfection  of  it  is  a  marvel  to  this  day.  Khufu,  or  Cheops,  who  built  the  Great  Pyramid-probably 
as  his  tlmb-reigneS  about  4700  B.C.,   so  that  the  pyramid  is  more  than  three  times  as  old  as  the  Roman  Empire. 

227 


M^emowman 


f^mr^tmm^mmi^mmmKsmmfmm 


T 


L. 


fmsimi^0Lii^^ !-  \4i^ti,»j..%- 


-■^^^iifcji-'ii-.j-jiijiifttigii,,  '^ 


ll|PMi«||Pt#iKan«MPM4Mn^|^^HV 


^aww—»wp»agg»lMyiJLi  Ji'!-"^  iij.!igaffw(pwi 


-pB 


THE  MAUSOLEUM  AT  HALICARNASSUS 
This  famous  monument  of  antiquity  was  erected  in  tlie  year  354  B.C.  to  the  memory  of  King:  Mausolus  of  Caria 
by  Ills  widow  Artemisia,  at  Halicarnassus,  the  beautiful  Greek  city-colony  on  the  shores  of  the  iEgean  Sea.  Some 
idea  of  its  sizf;  will  be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  it  was  surrounded  by  an  esplanade  which  measured  over 
three  hundred  feet  on  each  side,  while  its  total  height  was  nearly  a  hundred  and  fifty  le-'t.  The  statue  existed  almost 
intact  until  the   fourth   century   of  our  own  era,  and    was    finally  destroyed  in   the    Middle  Ages   by   the  Turks. 

228 


THE    COLOSSUS    O 
This  short-lived  achievement  of  ancient  ar'      -'  d    rr- n  al^ 
the  sun-god  raised  in  the  island  of  Rhodp  'i  v,' 

it  stood.  Dedicated  to  Apollo,  who  wa 
made  from  the  engines  of  war  which  thr 
An  earthquake  in  224  B.C.  destroyed  i' 


POrv 


vas  t^ 
juld  !■ 


largr      of  a  hundred  statues  to 

"MS  the  place  where 

I'cetes,  it  was 

'inary  statue. 

•■  Rhodes. 

229 


THE    TEMPLE    OF    DIANA    AT    EPHESUS 
"Great  is  Diana  of  the  Ephesians."     Her  temp, e  was  burned  down  in  356  B  C  ,  and  subsequent  to  that  year  the  great 
temple  famf-d  in  history  was  erected  by  tlie  lunians.      It  is  said  to  iiave  taken  220  ypars  to  constiuct    and  measured 
about  400  feet  in  length  and  200  feet  in  width,  while  it  contained  no  fewer  tlian  127  Ionic  columns  nearly  65  feet  high. 
The  temple  was  despoiled  by  Nero  and  destroyed  by  the  Goths  iu  262  A.D.,  but  some  of  its  ruins  still  remain. 


230 


THE    STATUE     OF     JUPITER    ON     OLYMPUS 
The  world-fa^moiis  statue  of  Jupiter  was  the  work  of  the  great  sculptor  Phidias      It  measured  43  feet  in  heie-ht  above 
the  base,      i  he  body   of  tne  god  was  carved   from    ivory,    and  the   drapery  was  of  soHd  g-old.     No  other  statue 
of  such  magnitude,  of  snch  artistic  perfection,  or  of  such  precious  material,  ha  ,  b^en  known  to  history      Among- 
the  ruins  of  the  temple  are  still  to  be  seen  the  remains  of  the  black  marble  mosaic  on  which  the  statue  stooci 


231 


THE    LIGHTHOUSE   OF   ALEXANDRIA 
On  the  island  of  Pharos,  close  to  Alexandria,  stood  the  famous  lighthouse  erectoci  by  Ptolemy  Philadelphus  about  280  B.C. 
Constructed  of  white  marble,  in  a  series  of  vast  stages  of  vaulted  masonry,  it  reached  the  height  of  520  feet,  and  m  its 
summit  burned  ni^ht  and  day,  an  immense  beacon  fire  of  wood,  which  could  be  seen  30  miles  at  sea.  The  lighthouse  was 
gradually  destroyed  by  earthquakes  and  the  action  of  the  sea,  but  existed  in  some  condition  to  the  end  ol  the  13th  century. 


232 


S^TION 


AND 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION 

IN    EGYPT 
BY     PROFESSOR     FLINDERS    PETRIE 


TN  looking  back  to  the  beginning  of 
A  civilisation  in  any  country,  we  have 
to  deal  with  the  physical  changes  which 
the  land  has  undergone,  and  to  con- 
sider the  conditions  which  promoted  or 
hindered  the  advance  of  its  inhabitants. 
The  nature  of  a  country  largely  rules 
the  nature  of  its  people,  both  bodily 
and  mentally  ;  and  it  may  even  be  true 
that,  if  sufficient  time  be  given,  the  same 
character  and  structure  will  always  be 
produced  by  equal  conditions. 

From  historical  records,  and  the  ceme- 
teries that  have  been  examined,  it  appears 
that  the  beginning  of  a  continuous  civil- 
isation in  Egypt  must  be  set  as  far  back 
as  about  10,000  years  ago,  or 
8000  B.C.      The  question   then 


Civilisation 
10,000 

Years  ago 


is,  how  far  the  condition  of  the 
country  at  that  age  was  similar 
to  that  now  seen  ?  The  present  state 
is  quite  new,  geographically  speaking,  as 
the  deposit  of  mud  by  the  Nile,  jn-ovid- 
ing  a  suitable  soil,  is  only  a  matter  of  a 
few  thousand  years.  The' accumulation  of 
deposit  is  about  5  in.  in  a  century  (47  at 
Naukratis,  5-1  at  Abusir,  5-5  at  Cano) ; 
and  the  depth  of  it  is  not  less  than  26  ft., 
and  varies  in  different  places  down  to 
62  ft.  The  lower  depths  are,  however, 
often  mixed  with  sand  beds,  and  do  not 
show  the  continuous  mud  deposit  ;  hence 
the  average  depth  of  39  ft.  is  too  large, 
and  if  we"  accept  35  ft.,  it  will  certamly 
be  a  full  estimate.  At  the  average  rate 
of  deposit,  this  would  be  formed  in  6,000 
years.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  the  deposit 


may  have  been  slower  at  the  beginning, 
and  hence  the  age  would  be  earUer.  Also, 
the  full  depth  may  be  greater,  owing  to 
some  borings  hitting  on  ground  which  was 
originally  above  the  river.  Hence  the 
extreme  limits  of  age  of  Nile 
How  we  deposit  in  different  positions 
can  Fix  ^^.^  perhaps  7,000  to  15,000 
the  Date  ^^^^^^  ^^^  probably  about 
10,000  years  may  be  a  hkely  age  for  the 
beginning  of  continuous  Nile  mud  strati- 
fication. Hence  it  is  clear  that  the  start 
of  the  civilisation  was  about  contemporary 
with  the  first  cultivable  ground. 

Earlier    than    the    Nile    deposits    there 

must  have  been  some  rainfall,  enough  to 

keep  up  the  volume  of  the  river,  and  to 

prevent  its  slackening,   so  as  to  deposit 

its  burden.     We  must  picture,  then,  the 

country  as  having  enough  rainfall   for  a 

scanty   vegetation   in    the   valleys,    while 

the  Nile  flowed  down  a  mighty  stream, 

filling  the  whole  bed  as  it  now  does  in 

flood,  and  bearing  its  mud  out  to  the  sea, 

except   in   some   backwaters   which   were 

shoaling  uj).     Such  a  land  would  support 

a    small     population     of     hunters,     who 

followed    the    desert    game    and    snared 

hippopotami   in   the    marshes. 

The  Nile   had  been   in  course 

of   recession  for  a  long  period 

before   it   began   to  rise  again 

by   filling    its    bed.      The    gravels    high 

above    the    present    Nile    contain    flints 

flaked  by  human  work  ;  much  as  in  Sinai 

such  flakes  are  found,  deep  in  the  filling 

of  the  valleys  which  belong  to  a  pluvial 

233 


Stone 
Age    in 
Egypt 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


The  First 
Dwellers  in 
the    Land 


period.  Yet  after  the  Nile  had  retreated 
down  to  the  present  level,  man  appears 
to  have  been  still  in  the  Palaeolithic  stage, 
as  freshly  flaked,  unrolled  flints  have 
been  found  at  the  lowest  surface  level  of 
the  desert.  As  the  country,  while  drying 
up,  and  before  mud  deposits  were  laid 
down,  would  have  only  been  suited  for 
occupation  by  hunters,  it  seems 
probable  that  Palaeohthic  Man 
had  continued  in  Egypt  until 
the  beginning  of  the  Nile  de- 
posits— that  is  to  say,  till  the  beginning 
of  the  continuous  civilisation  as  dis- 
covered in  the  cemeteries. 

Bushman  Type.  On  turning  to  the 
remains  of  the  earliest  burials,  we  find 
that  in  many  cases  female  figures  of  the 
Bushman — or  more  precisely  Koranna — 
type,  were  placed  in  the  graves  ;  while  at 
the  same  time  long,  slender  figures  of  the 
European  type  are  also  found.  The 
inference  is  that  the  Palaeolithic  race  of 
the  Koranna  type  was  known  to  the 
earhest  civilised  race  in  Egypt,  and  that 
they  were  being  expelled  and  exterminated, 
as  only  female  figures  are  found — repre- 
senting captive  slave  women — and  even 
these  soon  disappear.  Thus  it  would 
seem  that  Egypt,  as  an  almost  desert 
region,  before  the  formation  of  the  cultiv- 
able mud  flats,  was  the  last  home  on  the 
Mediterranean  of  the  hunters  who  con- 
tinued in  the  Palaeohthic  stage.  The 
physical  type  of  the  figures  which  we  can 
attribute  to  this  earliest  population  has 
the  Bushman  characteristics  of  fatness 
of  the  thighs  and  hips,  with  a  deep 
lumbar  curve ;  and  a  line  of  whisker 
covers  the  jaws  of  the 
female  figures,  akin  to 
the  fur  on  the  bodies 
of  women  on  the  Bras- 
sempouy  and  Lan- 
gerie  -  Basse  ivory 
carvings.  This  indi- 
cates that  they  be- 
longed to  a  cold 
climate,  and  had  not 
been  developed  in 
Egypt.  As,  however, 
had  certainly 
in  the  Nile 
for  long  age- 
this  northern  indica- 
tion points  to  a  com- 
paratively recent 
invasion  from  a  colder 
to  a  warmer  climate. 


man 

dwelt 

valley 


THE  FIRST  INHABITANTS  OF  EGYPT 
As  female  figures  of  the  Bushman  type  are  found  in  the 
very  earhest  Egyptian  graves,  it  is  tliought  that  this 
race  was  native  to  the  country  and  was  gradually 
expelled  by  the  first  civilised  people.  The  photograph 
illustrates  one   of  the   figtires    taken   from   a    grave. 


such    as   has   been    the    rule    throughout 
historical  times. 

Prehistoric  Period.  The  beginning 
of  the  continuous  civilisation  of  the 
country  must  be  placed  at  about  8000  B.C. 
The  written  history  extends  back  to  the 
first  dynasty,  and  places  that  at  5500  B.C., 
and  this  is  checked  at  the  sixth,  twelfth, 
and  eighteenth  dynasties  by  records  of 
the  rising  of  Sirius,  and  of  the  seasons  in 
the  shifting  year,  which  agree  to  this 
dating  in  general.  For  the  length  of  the 
prehistoric  age  before  these  written  records 
there  is  no  exact  dating.  But,  as  in  a  given 
district  of  Egypt,  where  all  the  desert  has 
been  searched,  the  prehistoric  graves  are 
about  as  numerous  as  those  made  during 
the  six  thousand  years  of  the  historic 
time,  at  least  2,000  or  3,000  years  must 
be  allowed.  The  amount  of  change  in 
every  kind  of  production  during  this  age 
is  considerable  ;  and  as  we  can  trace  two 
cycles  of  civilisation,  which  usually  occupy 
about  1,500  years  each  in  the  later  times, 
it  is  likely  that  2,500  years  is  too  little 
rather  than  too  long  a  period.  As  no 
definite  scale  of  years  can  be  used,  the 
dating  of  the  graves  of  this  age  is  treated 
as  a  matter  of  sequence.  From 
a  careful  statistical  classing  of 
the  pottery,  it  is  practicable  to 
put  about  a  thousand  of  the 
fullest  graves  into  their  original  order ; 
this  series  is  then  divided  into  50  equal 
parts,  and  these  are  numbered  from 
30  to  80.  Thus,  sequence  date  30  is  the 
earliest  type  of  graves  yet  found,  and 
s.D.  80  is  of  the  age  of  Mena,  the  founder 
of  the  first  dynasty.  The  sequence  dates 
are  given  below  for 
each  stage  of  the  pre- 
historic times. 

Earliest  Burials. 
The  earliest  graves 
found  are  shallow  cir- 
cular hollows  on  the 
desert,  about  30  in. 
across,  and  a  foot 
deep.  The  body  lies 
closely  doubled  up, 
wrap[)ed  in  goat-skins. 
There  are  very  few 
objects  placed  with 
these  burials;  a 
single  cup  of  pottery, 
red,  with  black  top  ; 
rarely,  a  slate  palette 
for  grinding  face- 
paint  ;    and,    in    one 


Time 

Without 

Dates 


234 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    EGYPT 


grave,  a  copper  pin  to  fasten  the  goat- 
skin. Pottery  was  in  a  simple  stage,  and 
weaving  was  quite  unknown.  These  graves 
are  classed  as  sequence  date  30. 

First  Civilisation.  The  next  period 
is  that  of  the  white  patterns  on  red  (s.d.  31 
to  34).  This  use  of  lines  of  raised  white  slip 
is  the  same  as  on  the  present  Kabjde 
pottery,  and  the  patterns  are  so  closely 
alike  on  the  ancient  and  modern  that  this 
forms  a  strong  evidence  for  a  Western 
connection   of   the 


people, 
period 


In 

the 


this 


lines  of  the  civili- 
sation become 
clearly  marked 
The  fine  flint  chip 
ping  with  delicate 
serrated  edges ;  the 
polished   red    pot- 


POTTERY  OF   FIRST  EGYPTIAN  CIVILISATION 


circular   The  pottery  of  the  first  period  of  Egyptian  civilisation  is  character- 


s.D.  40  and  44.  These  changes  serve  to 
stamp  the  point  of  the  change,  but  it  is 
in  other  respects  that  the  differences 
are  most  visible.  The  black-topped  pottery, 
red  polished,  and  fancy  forms  of  pottery 
cease  to  develop  after  43,  whereas  the 
decorated  pottery,  with  brown  line  patterns 
on  buff  ware,  is  scarcely  known  till  40, 
and  the  late  class  of  pottery  begins  at  43. 
In  the  stone  vases  the  forms  of  tall  tubular 
shape,  with  handles,  cease  at  40,  and  the 
barrel  forms  begin 
at  39,  and  are 
dominant  by  42. 
In  flint  work  the 
various  new  types 
begin  from  39  to 
45  ;  the  disc  mace 
dies  out  about  40, 
and  the  pear- 
shaped  mace  be- 
gins at  42.     In  the 


tery,     of     .        . 

1              f           f^^^^,  ised  by  raised  white  Hnes  on  a  red  body,  and  from  the  fact  that  it  ^i„j.„    ^^1^+  +  ^r,     ^1^ 

ana          OI           lancy  closely  resembles  the  pottery  of  the  Kabyle  people,  who  live  in  Slate    paieiieS     OIQ 

forms  ;        the        tall  North  Africa  to-day   it  is  thought  the  first  Egyptian  civilisation  typCS     Vauish     and 

'                                    ^  ma  V  have  rnme  irom  the  wp.«:t_    Xhp<;e  #»-yamnlp<=  nr#i  h#iforp"7nnr»  R  P  '^  r 


may  have  come  from  the  west.  These  examples  are  before  7000  B.C 

from 


round-  bottomed 

stone  vases ;  the  slate  palettes  for  face-paint, 
of  animal  forms  and  of  rhombic  shape  ;  the 
use  of  sandals;  the  ivory  combs  with  animal 
figures  ;  the  disc-shaped  mace-head — all  of 
these  were  in  use  with  the  white  cross-lined 
pottery,  and  stamp  the  general  type  of 
_ the  beginning  of  the  civilisa- 

EmerTaTom  *^°"-  ^^  ^^^'^  ^^^°'^  ."^ 
^  ™Y/-"1^  *"  "*  a  settled  population,  with 
the  Mists  .  f.    /•  ,      ' 

strong     artistic      taste     in 

handicraft,   but   not  in  copying  Nature ; 

with  patience  for  very  long    and   skilful 

work,  and  probably  organised,   therefore, 

under    chiefs     who    commissioned    such 

labour  ;  yet  with  sufficient  general  demand 

for  fine  things  to  have  raised  hand  pottery 

to  its   highest  level ;   with  strong  beliefs 

about  a  future  life,  as  shown  by  the  uniform 

detail  of  the  position  of  the  body  and  the 

nature    of    the    offerings    in    the    grave  ; 

with  the  arts  of  spinning  and  weaving ; 

fairly   clothed,   as  shown   by   the  use   of 

sandals  ;    fighters,  with  finely-made   and 

treasured    weapons ;     with    the    use    of 

personal  marks   for  property — altogether 

much  in  the  stage  which  we  now  see  in 

the  highest  races  of  the  Pacific  or  Central 

Africa. 

Eastern    Invasion.    This    civilisation 

had  lasted  for  a  few  centuries  when  we 

see  a  change  come  over  it.    On  searching 

the  types  of  pottery  we  see  many  new 

forms  arising  from  s.d.   38  to  43,  while 

many    older    types    disappear    between 


new  ones  arise 
37  to  42.  The  same  is  seen  in 
ivories.  Foreign  intercourse  was  increased, 
as  silver  (from  Asia  Minor  ?),  lazAili 
(from  Persia  ?),  serpentine  and  haematite 
(from  Sinai  ?)  all  come  into  use  from 
38  to  40.  In  copying  Nature,  the  steato- 
pygous  figures  of  the  Bushman  type 
are  only  found  before  38,  and  human 
figure  amulets  are  known  from  down  to 
44.  Animal  figure  amulets  begin  in  45. 
Multiple  burials  in  graves  are  common 
down  to  40,  and  continue  till  43  ;  only 
single  burials  are  known  later. 

The  racial  changes  that  are  thus  in- 
dicated by  these  widespread  differences 
can  only  be  traced  by  the  different  pro- 
ducts. The  white  hne  pottery  charac- 
teristic of  the  earliest  people  is  closely 
like  that  of  the  Kabyles,  and  the  simi- 
larity of  the  skull  measurements  show  that 
there  is  no  bar  to  accepting  the  con- 
nection with  the  North  African  race. 
But  the  details  of  the  new  people,  using 
animal  amulets,  a  face  veil,  wavy-handled 
pottery  like  that  of  early  Pales- 
tine, and  the  Asiatic  silver 
and  lazuli,  all  point  to  their 
coming  in  from  the  East.  This 
change  may  be  further  linked  with  the 
religious  traditions.  This  later  myth- 
ology taught  that  Osiris  had  found  the 
Egyptians  in  a  brutal  existence,  and  he 
had  taught  them  agriculture,  laws,  and 
worship  ;    this  appears  to  be  the  tradition 

235 


Invasion 
from 
the  East 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


of  the  bringing  in  of  cultivation  by  the 
earhest  civilisation  at  s.D.  30.  His  wor- 
shippers were  allied  with  those  of  Isis,  who 
were  a  kindred  tribe.  Hence  Osiris  is  said 
to  have  married  his  sister  Isis.  The  myth 
further  shows  that  this  civilisation  was 
attacked  treacherously  by  the  tribe  who 
worshipped  Set,  in  confederacy  with  an 
Ethiopian  queen,  and  they  suc- 
-.    *  ceeded  in  suppressing  the  wor- 

y    o  ogy    gj^jp    ^£    Osiris    and   removing 

*^*  his  remains  to  Byblos  in  Syria. 

This  seems  to  agree  to  the  influx  of  Asiatic 
influence,  about  s.D.  40,  which  we  have 
noticed  above.  The  correction  of  the  calen- 
dar from  360  to  365  days,  is  attributed  to 
the  beginning  of  the  civilisation  (at  s.D. 
30)  by  the  myth  that  Osiris  and  his  cycle 
of  gods  were  born  on  the  extra  five  days. 

Second  Civilisation.     The  second  pre- 
historic   civilisation,    of    which    we    have 


stone  vases  were  wrought ;  and  that  by 
the  form  of  the  vase  they  were  probably 
the  same  people  as  the  later  prehistoric 
stock.  Yet,  on  the  other  hand,  we  occa- 
sionally find  pottery  vases  of  that  people 
in  the  earlier  prehistoric  age,  so  that  they 
must  have  been  in  touch  with  Egypt 
throughout.  The  more  likely  source  for 
them  was  the  mountainous  region,  where 
snow  sometimes  lies,  between  Egypt  and 
the  Red  Sea ;  and  certainly  this  was  the 
source  of  the  rare  igneous  rocks  used  for 
the   prehistoric   vases. 

The  general  conclusion  would  be,  then, 
that  a  people  occupying  the  mountainous 
region  east  of  Egypt  had  an  independent 
civilisation,  and  were  in  touch  with  the 
early  prehistoric  people  of  the  Nile  valley. 
Then  about  s.d.  38  they  began  to  push 
down  into  Egypt,  and  fully  entered  it 
by  s.D.  44,  bringing  with   them   various 


i^^^A^AA4^AA^ 


PREHISTORIC   SHIPS:    THE   EARLIEST   PICTURES  OF  EGYPTIAN   VESSELS 
The  pottery  of  the  second  period  of  Egryptian  civilisation  is  rich  in  representations  of  prehistoric  ships.     The  vessels 
are  shown  with  many  oars,  and  the  cabins  are  placed  araidship  with  a  gangway  between.     It  is  gathered  from  these 
crude  drawings  that  in   prehistoric   times   there   was  a   considerable   shipping  trade  along  the   coast  of  Egypt. 


traced  the  Asiatic  source,  is  specially 
marked  by  the  use  of  a  hard  buff  pottery, 
on  which  designs  are  often  painted  in 
l)rown  outline.  The  art  of  these  has  no 
connection  with  that  of  the  early  white 
line  designs;  the  habit  of  covering  figures 
with  cross  lines,  and  the  imitation  of 
hasket-work,  have  entirely  disap{)eared ; 
and,  on  the  contrary,  the  plant,  ostrich, 
and  ship  designs  are  quite  new. 

What,  then,  were  the  connections  of 
these  peo})le  ?  One  indication  is  gleaned 
from  carvings  at  the  close  of  the  i)re- 
liistoric  ;ige.  Two  trilnitaries  of  the  new 
king  of  I'-gvpt  are  shown  bearing  stone 
vases  of  the  style  of  those  of  the  second 
prehistoric  civilisation,  s.D.  45-75.  They 
have  large  pointed  noses,  and  wear  y)ig- 
tails,  and  another  tributary  of  the  same 
tyi^e  wears  a  long  robe.  Hence  we  may  see 
that  they  came  from  a  cold  region  where 

236 


different  points  of  their  own  civilisation, 
and  expelling  the  Osiris  worship  in  favour 
of  Set,  who  was  their  god.  They  probably 
brought  in  the  Semitic  elements  to  the 
Egyptian  language,  along  with  the  other 
Asiatic  connections. 

Shipping.  Under  this  new  order  of 
things  we  see  much  more  foreign  and  mari- 
time connection.  The  introduction  of 
silver  from  Asia,  of  lazuli  from 
Persia,  of  hctmatite  from  Sinai, 
of  serpentine  from  the  Aral)ian 
desert— all  show  this.  On  the 
va.ses  we  .see  the  starfish  jxiinted,  and  one 
of  the  most  usual  decorations  was  the 
figure  of  a  great  galley  or  ship.  These 
shijxs  are  shown  with  oars  on  the  pottery 
vases,  and  without  oars  or  sails  on  the 
tomb  paintings.  From  the  proportion  of 
the  figures  they  appear  to  have  been  as 
much  as  50  ft.  long,  and  this  is  confirmed 


Fleet  of 

Prehistoric 

Ships 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    EGYPT 


by  the  oars,  which  number  up  to  sixty. 
Neither  indication  is  exact ;  but  the  ten- 
dency would  be  to  exaggerate  the  size  of 
the  figures,  and  certainly  not  to  diminish 
them,  and  so  aggrandise  the  ship.  The 
shipbuilding  in  the  early  history  may 
prepare  us  for  the  earlier  rise  of  such 
work,  when  we  read  of  Senefru  building 
sixty  ships  of  a  hundred  feet  long  in  one 
year. 

These  prehistoric  ships  were  all  of  one 
pattern.  Amidships  were  the  large  cabins, 
and  there  was  no  poop  or  forecastle  struc- 
ture, probably  because  of  the  want  of 
support  fore  and  aft,  the  flotation  being 
mainly  in  the  middle.  The  two  cabins 
v/ere  separated  by  a  broad  gangway  across 
the  boat,  and  joined  above  the  gangway 
by  a  bridge  from  roof  to  roof.  Lesser 
cabins  projected  fore  and  aft  from  the 
main  cabins.  On  the  roofs  were  rails  at 
the  corners,  so  as  to  secure  top  cargo 
without  getting  in  the  way  of  loading  it  up. 
In  a  large  ship  there  was  an  upper  cabin 
on  the  hinder  main  one,  a  light  shelter 
shaded  with  branches.  From  the  back 
of  the  hinder  cabin  stood  up  a  tall  pole 
bearing  a  solid  object  as  a 
What  the      c;tandard,  which  we  shall  notice 


Ships 
Were  Like 


below.  At  the  stern  was  the 
steersman  seated  by  an  upright 
post,  to  which  was  probably  lashed  the 
steering  oar,  as  in  the  historical  boats.  In 
the  bows  was  a  low  platform,  with  a  rail 
round  it,  for  the  look-out,  shaded  with 
branches.  The  cabins  were  narrower  than 
the  beam,  and  left  free  space  for  rowers 
on  each  side. 

Foreign  Imports.  Vessels  of  this  large 
size  certainly  imply  a  corresponding 
importance  of  commerce.  We  have  noted 
already  the  foreign  imports  into  Egypt ;  and 
others  imply  more  distinctly  a  sea  inter- 
course. From  s.D.  33  down  to  s.d.  68  there 
is  found  black  pottery  with  incised  basket- 
work  patterns  [page  238]  filled  in  with 
white.  It  is  always  rare,  only  occurring  in 
less  than  i  per  cent,  of  the  graves,  and  in 
only  one  case  was  there  more  than  a  solitary 
example.  It  is  entirely  disconnected  from 
the  Egyptian  types,  but  it  is  closely  akin 
to  pottery  found  on  the  north  of  the 
Mediterranean,  in  Spain  (Ciempozuelos), 
in  Bosnia,  and  in  the  earhest  town  of  Troy. 
At  the  close  of  the  prehistoric  age  the 
black  pottery  of  the  late  Neohthic  city  of 
Knossos  is  found  in  the  lowest  levels  of 
the  temple  at  Abydos.  And  in  the  royal 
tombs  of  the  first  dynasty   there  many 


vases  and  pieces  have  been  found  which 
are  clearly  of  the  earliest  age  of  painted 
iEgean  pottery.  Considering  that  the  bulk 
of  the  trade  must  have  been  for  perish- 
able goods — oil  and  skins  from  Crete  and 
Greece,  corn  and  beans  from  Egypt — 
it  is  not  to  be  expected  that  a  great 
amount  of  breakable  pottery  would  pass 
and  be  preserved  in  burials. 
Trade  There     are,     moreover,     some 

m  Those       ^^jjj^^   ^^^^   ^^   ^^    besides   the 

^^®  northern  pottery.    Throughout 

the  later  prehistoric  age  emery  was  regu- 
larly in  use  for  all  the  grinding  and 
polishing  of  stone  vases  and  of  carnelian 
beads  ;  and  so  common  that  one  excelsior 
spirit  in  search  of  a  tour  de  force  had  even 
cut  a  vase  out  of  block  emery,  as  being  the 
hardest  known  material,  this  emery,  so 
far  as  we  know,  must  have  come  from 
Smyrna.  Again,  the  gold  of  the  first 
dynasty  contains  a  large  amount  of  silver. 
This  points  to  its  source  from  the  Pactolus 
region,  where  electrum  was  found,  rather 
than  from  Nubia,  where  the  gold  is  free 
from  silver. 

CONNFXTION    OF   THE    SHIPPING.      When 

we  look  at  the  evidence  of  the  ships  them- 
selves we  see  that  it  points  to  their  having 
been  used  at  sea  rather  than  on  the  Nile. 
It  is  impossible  to  row  a  ship  up  against 
the  Nile  stream,  which  runs  at  three  miles 
an  hour,  and  sailing  or  towing  is  the  only 
way  to  go  southward  in  Egypt.  But  in 
only  one  instance  is  a  ship  with  a  sail  repre- 
sented, while  there  are  many  dozens  of 
figures  of  rowing  vessels.  The  galley  has 
always  been  the  type  of  business  ship  on 
the  Mediterranean.  All  through  the  clas- 
sical wars  the  rowing  galley  was  the  main- 
stay of  power.  The  Homeric  catalogue  of 
ships,  the  Phoenician  coinage,  the  Assyrian 
sculptures,  the  Greek  fleets,  the  Cartha- 
ginian navy  and  its  destroyers  of  Rome, 
the  pirates  of  Liburnia  and  Lycia,  down  to 
the  Venetian  fleet  and  the  French  galleys 
of   a   couple   of   centuries   ago,    all   show 

the  dominance  of  the  oar. 
l°^\  The  nature  of  the  standards 

Ensigns  ^^^^^^  ^^^^^  carried  by  the  shii:»s 
Carried  ^^,^^  been  variously  interpreted. 
We  can  distinguish  the  elephant,  bird 
on  a  crescent,  and  fish ;  the  two  or 
four  pair  of  horns,  the  Ijush,  and  the 
branch  ;  the  rows  of  two,  three,  four,  or 
five  hills  ;  the  crossed  arrows,  and  the 
harpoon,  besides  other  forms  which  we 
cannot  identify.  The  question  is,  what  view 
will   account  "for  these  most  completely  ? 

237 


ARTICLES    ILLUSTRATIVE    OF    THE    EARLY    CIVILISATION    OF    EGYPT 


(i)  Slate  palettes  on  which  paint  for  rubbing  round  the  eyes  was  ground ;  (z)  adze  heads  and  harpoons,  the 
harpoons  at  the  sides  being  of  bone,  the  oth'-rs  of  copper;  (3)  beautifully  flaked  flint  knife;  (4)  serpent  amulet 
of  stone ;  (5)  maces  of  quartzose  rock,  very  effective  weapons  ;  (6)  forked  lances  of  flint ;  (7)  combs 
of  ivory ;  (8)  vases  carved  Irom  hard   stone ;  (9)  black  incised  pottery,   a  foreign  import  into  early  Egypt. 


238 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    EGYPT 


Some  have  thought  they  were  emblems 
of  gods,  and  that  the  boats  were  sacred 
to  divinities ;  but  there  are  many  which 
cannot  be  thus  explained.  Others  have 
thought  that  they  indicated  tribes  ; 
Imt  the  rarity  of  repetitions,  and  the 
absence  of  any  duplicates  together,  are 
against  this.  Marks  of  personal  ownership 
have  been  suggested;  and  this  is  not 
impossible,  as  they  might  be  well  dedicated 
to  special  gods.  But  the  prominence  of 
the  groups  of  hills  as  signs  agrees  best  with 
their  being  marks  of  the  ports  from  which 
they  hailed  ;  the  divine  emblems  would 
naturally  be  those  of  the  god  of  the  port, 
the  number  of  hills  would  be  very  likely  to 
distinguish  different  ports,  the  elephant, 
the  bush,  or  the  fish  might  well  be  the  mark 
of  a  port.  And  the  parallel  in  later  times 
of  such  being  distinctive  ensigns  for  ports 
— as  in  the  ensign  of  Gades  found  in  the 
Red  Sea— agrees  to  this  usage.  The  carry- 
ing of  a  port  ensign  in  an  age  of  independent 
city-states  was  equivalent  to  a  national 
flag  in  later  times  ; 
and  it  was  essential 
for  showing  friends 
or  foes. 

We  have  dwelt  at 
length  on  the  detail 
of  this  shipping,  as 
it  is  the  most  im- 
portant subject  for 
showing  the  extent 
and  character  of  the 
early  civilisation.  It 
takes  two  to  trade  as 
well  as  to  quarrel ; 
and  these  large  ships 
were  not  rowed  about  the  Mediterranean 
unless  there  was  a  paying  trade  to  be  done 
on  those  coasts,  a  people  civilised  enough 
to  produce  goods  that  were  wanted  and  to 
require  foreign  stuff  in  exchange,  and  a 
society  stable  enough  to  enable  goods  to  be 
stocked  in  bulk  and  traded  without  any 
serious  risk  of  fraud  or  force. 

Hunting.  The  main  occupation  repre- 
sented in  the  prehistoric  paintings  is  hunt- 
ing. The  bow  and  arrow  was 
used.  The  bow  was  a  single 
piece  of  wood,  painted  red  and 
covered  with  zigzag  white  lines ; 
the  arrow  was  of  reed,  with  a  point  several 
inches  long  of  hard  wood.  The  forked  lance 
of  flint  was  also  a  favourite  weapon  [p.  238] ; 
it  was  inserted  at  the  end  of  a  wooden 
shaft,  which  was  controlled  by  a  long  thong 
of  leather  ending  in  alabaster  knobs  which 


HTTrF 

STANDARDS    OF    EGYPTIAN    SHIPS 

There  has  been  much  speculation  as  to  the  significance 
of  the  standards  carried  by  the  most  ar>rient  of  the 
Egyptian  vessels,  as  recorded  on  pcti-ery  and  else- 
where. Some  examples  of  these  standards  are  here 
given.  The  most  reasonable  supposition  is  that  these 
devices  indicated  the  port  from  which  the  vessel  sailed. 


kept  it  from  entirely  flying  trom  the  fingers. 
Thus  the  lance  could  be  thrown  by  a  man 
in  ambush  to  cut  the  legs  of  a  gazelle, 
while,  if  it  missed,  it  was  jerked  back 
by  the  elastic  thong,  and  so  saved  from 
breaking  the  delicate  edge  of  flint.  These 
forked  lances  are  found  throughout  nearly 
all  the  prehistoric  time  ;  and  they  con- 
tinued in  use  in  North  Africa 
Mode  of  ^jj^  ^^g  Roman  Age,  when  Com- 
modus  borrowed  thence  their 
Hunting        ^gg    ^^^    hunting    the    ostrich. 

This  lance  retained  by  a  thong  was  the 
parallel  to  the  favourite  harpoon  used 
in  fishing.  Another  mode  of  hunting  was 
the  trap.  This  is  represented  as  being 
formed  of  pointed  sphnts  or  stakes, 
lashed  together  like  spokes  of  a  wheel, 
with  the  points  around  a  central  hollow. 
Such  traps  to  catch  the  legs  of  animals 
are  used  now  in  Africa,  and  an  example 
was  found  at  the  Ramesseum,  dating 
perhaps  from  the  twentieth  dynasty. 
Sticks  or  clubs  were  used  in  hunting  and 
in  fighting. 

Fighting.  The 
earliest  representa- 
tion of  fighting  is  on 
a  vase  of  the  white 
slip  on  red,  at  the 
beginning  of  the  pre- 
historic age.  On  that 
a  man  with  long, 
wavy  hair  appears  to 
be  spearing  another 
man  in  the  side. 
Later,  there  are  the 
fighters  on  the  Hiera- 
konpolis  tomb,  at 
this  hooked  sticks  are 


On 


Ingenuity 
of  the 
Hunters 


about  s.D.  63. 
used,  and  the  fighters  are  clad  with  a 
spotted  animal's  hide  on  the  back.  One 
man  has  been  killed,  and  another  is  hard 
pressed,  fallen  on  one  knee.  To  save  him- 
self from  blows  he  has  taken  off  the  hide 
and  is  holding  it  up,  thus  anticipating  the 
use  of  the  shield.  It  seems  likely  that  the 
Egyptian  shields  of  hide  stretched  on  a 
frame  of  sticks  were  directly  copied 
from  this  use  of  the  hide  that  was  other- 
wise worn  on  the  body.  In  another  group 
a  black  man  is  holding  three  red  captives 
bound  with  a  black  cord,  while  two  red 
men  approach  him  to  deliver  their 
kindred. 

The  weapons  mostly  found  are  the  stone 
maces  [page  238].  ^ These  were  sharp-edged 
discs  in  the  earlier  age,  a  form  which  is 
very   effective    in    a   mixed    fight,    as   it 

239 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Fighting 

with 

Maces 


cannot  be  turned  aside  like  a  battleaxe, 
but   must   cut  in   whatever    direction    it 
fails.     These  maces   were    usually    made 
of   porphyry  and   other  quartzose   rocks. 
The  mace  used  in  the  later  age  was  of  a 
pear  shape,  and  this  form  was  continued 
into  the  historic  times,  and  per- 
}:)etuated    in    the    conventional 
scene    of    the    king  striking  an 
enemy,  even  in  the  latest  times. 
The    handle    holes    in    these    maces    are 
very   small,   and   this   shows    that    prob- 
ably the   handles  were    dried    thongs    of 
hide.     Nothing  else  would  be  sufficiently 
tough  and  elastic.     The  flint  dagger  was 
probably    also    used,    and    certainly    the 
copper  dagger.     A  very  fine  ex- 
ample of  this,  dated  to  s.d.  55  or 
60,  is  wrought  with  a  quadran- 
gular  blade,    giving    the    utmost 
strength   and   lightness,   a   better 
design  than  that  of  any  daggers 
of  the  historic  times. 

Tools.     Tools   of   metal  begin 
with  small,  square  chisels  of  cop})er 
at     S.D.   38.      The    intermediate 
examples  have  not  been  found  till 
we   reach   a   fine   large   chisel  of 
copper  at   the  close  of   the  pre- 
historic.    Adzes  of  copper  [p.  238J 
begin  at  s.D.  56,  or   earlier,  and 
increase  in  size  down  to  historic 
times  ;  they  con- 
tinued to  be  the 
favourite  tool  of 
the     Egy})tians 
for     both     wood 
and  stone  work- 
ing   until    (ireck 
times.     Borers 
are     usually 
tapered,  to  work 
in  soft  material. 
Needles   of   cop- 
per    appear     as 
early  as  s.D.  48 


and  perfection  of  hand  work.  The  Scandi- 
navian flint  chipping  used  to  be  regarded 
as  the  most  perfect,  but  the  Egyptian 
work  entirely  surpasses  it  in  regularity 
and  boldness. 

Stone  Vases.    Hard  stones  were  largely 
employed   for   making  vases  [page    238]. 
In  the  earlier  age  tall,  cylindrical  forms 
were   used,   and   in   the   later   age   barrel 
forms.     The  earlier  material  was  usually 
basalt,    but   syenite,  porphyry,  alabaster 
and  limestone  were  also  used.      The  later 
materials  included  slate,  grey  limestone, 
breccia,    serpentine,    and    diorite.        The 
hollowing    out    of    these    vases    was    by 
grinding,    but    the    outside    was    entirely 
_        formed  by  chipping  and  polishing 
without  rotary  motion.     The  per- 
fect regularity  of  the  forms,  and 
the  line  taste  shown  in  the  curves 
of    the    outlines,  as    well    as   the 
hardness    of    the  material,   place 
the  vase  working  higher  than  any 
work  of  the  historic  times. 

Pottery.     Pottery  was  greatly 
developed,  although  the  wheel  was 
not  used,  and  all  the  forms  were 
entirely  modelled    by    hand    and 
eye  without  mechanical  guidance. 
The  outlines  are  true  and  fine,  the 
circularity  is  astonishingly  regular, 
although    all    the   trimming   and 
polish  runs  verti- 
cally ;  and  it  was 
as  easy  in  such  a 
mode  of  building 
to     make     oval, 
doubled,    or 
square  forms,  all 
of   which    are 

THE    FIRST    PICTURES    OF    FIGHTING  lOUna.         i  ne 

The  earliest    representation   of  fighting,    at   the   beginning  of  the       '                J      .  . 

prehistoric    age,    shows   a    man    with  long,    wavy    hair,    spearing  pottcry       iS  the 

another  man  in  the  side.      Later,  are  fighters  on  the  Hierakonpolis  Aarnr^^tfA  with 

tomb,  using  hooked  sticks  and  clad  in  piebald  hides  of  animals.  ClCCOiaieu,  Willi 

brown  -  red  lines 
on  a  hard  buff  body.  The  forms  are 
clearly  copied  from  those  of  the  stone 
vases ;  and  the  patterns  are  derived  from 
the  fossils  and  veins  in  the  stone,  or 
from  the  cordage  net  in  which  the  vases 
were  slung  for  carrying.     Next 


and  the  fastening  pins 
of  copper  begin  with  the  very  earliest 
graves  of  s.d.  30. 

Flint  working  was  the  greatest  artistic 
industry  of  the  prehistoric  age.  The 
surfaces  were  not  merely  reduced  by  hap- 
hazard flaking,  but  the  flints  were  ground 
into  form,  and  then  reflaked  in  a  mar- 
vellously regular  manner  with  uniform 
parallel  grooves  [page  238].  The  finishing 
of  the  edges  by  deep  serrations  of  the 
fineness  of  forty  to  the  inch,  and  the 
chipping  out  of  delicate  armlets  of  flint, 
show    also    the    same    astonishing    skill 

240 


1. 000 

Forms  of 
Pottery 


appear  aloes  and  other  bushes, 
and  figures  of  ships,  which 
we  have  already  noticed. 
Kows  of  ostriches  and  of  hills  are  also 
favourite  designs. 

Other  pottery  of  this  ware,  but  not 
decorated,  has  a  curious  type  of  pro- 
jecting ledge,  wavy  up    and   down,    for 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    EGYPT 


handles.  Beginning  at  s.d.  40  as  a  globular 
vessel,  the  type  narrows  to  an  upright 
jar ;  by  s.d.  60  the  handles  dwindle, 
becoming  united  around  it  as  a  wavy 
band  of  pattern  ;  by  s.d.  70  the  jar  at 
last  becomes  a  cylinder  ;  by  s.d.  75  the 
band  becomes  a  mere  line ;  and  then 
after  s.d.  80 — ^^in  the  first  dynasty — the 
jar  dwindles  to  a  rough  tube  like  a  thumb- 
stall.  The  contents  of  such  jars  similarly 
deteriorate.  At  first,  perfumed  ointment 
was  put  in  them,  then  it  was  covered  with 
a  layer  of  mud  to  retain 
the  scent  ;  the  mud  in- 
creased until  it  was 
merely  scented  mud,  then 
only  plain  mud  was  used, 
and  lastly  they  were  left 
empty.  Beside  many  other 
forms  of  this  hard 
ware  there  was  also 
a  long  series  of  types 
in  a  rough  brown 
pottery,  which  passed 
on  into  the  ordinary 
pottery  of  the  first 
dynasty.      As     there 


they  only  belong  to  the  earlier  age,  sug- 
gesting that  the  hair  was  worn  shorter 
in  the  second  period.  Decorated  tusks 
of  ivory  are  also  early  ;  they  were  fastened 
on  to  leather  work,  probably  to  close  the 
openings  of  water  skins.  Ivory  spoons 
belong  only  to  the  second  period,  as  like- 
wise do  the  forehead  pendants  of  shell. 

Amulets    of    animal    forms    were    fre- 
quent  in   the   second  period.      They  are 
generally  cut  in  stone,  carnelian,  serpen- 
tine, porphyry,  and  coloured  limestones. 
The   forms  are  the  bull's 
head  (which  continued  in 
use   into    historic   times), 
the  hawk,  serpent  [p.  238], 
frog,  fly,  scorpion,   claw, 
vase,  and  spear  head.  The 
meanings      attached      to 
them    are    quite    un- 
known. 

Games  are  found, 
as  shown  by  the  ivory 
draughtsmen,  the 
small  balls  or 
marbles,  the  stone 
gateway     and     nine- 


PREHISTORIC  POTTERY  OF  EGYPT 

are    over    a    thousand    The  later  pottery  of  the  prehistoric  period  is  characterised  pins    [page    2421,     the 

,..,,,  ,    ,.  r  ,  1   •      by   brown-red    lines    on  a    hard  buff  body.      The    forms  ;-  ^r     o  -r     i' 

dmerent  forms  of  this    and    decorations  have    been    copied   from    earlier    stone  hgUrCS     Of     llOUS     and 

prehistoric       pottery  ^^^«^'  ^"^  ^'°'^  *^«  "«*^  '"  ""^'"^^  t^^y  ^^""^  ^^"'^'^-  hares,  and  the  throw- 


A  Constant 

Personal 

Possession 

panics  it 


known,  and  their  study  has  been  the  key  to 
the  whole  arrangement  of  that  age,  this 
subject  is  a  very  wide  one,  which  we  have 
barely  noticed  here. 

Slate  Palettes.  A  constant  personal 
possession  was  the  slab  of  slate  upon 
which  the  green  malachite  or 
red  ochre  was  ground  for  colour- 
ing around  the  eyes.  Usually 
a  brown  pebble  crusher  accom- 
and  the  dead  often  have  a 
little  leather  bag  of  malachite  in  the 
hands.  These  slate  palettes  begin  with 
a  plain  rhomb  form,  probably  de- 
rived from  the  natural  cleavages  of  the 
slate  rock.  Well-formed  animal  figures 
were  also  carved  as  slate  silhouettes  ;  the 
deer,  hippopotamus,  and  turtle  are  the 
oldest,  and  the  fish  also  comes  into  the 
earlier  age.  The  double  bird  type  begins 
with  the  second  age,  and  all  the  types 
continuously  degrade  by  repeated  copy- 
ing until  their  original  form  is  quite 
indistinguishable  at  the  close  of  the 
prehistoric  age  [page  238]. 

Personal  Objects.  Ivory  carving 
is  common,  mainly  for  long  combs 
to  fasten  up  the  hair.  These  usually 
have  an  animal  on  the  top  of  them  ;   but 

16 


ing  slips  for  obtaining  a  count  as  with  dice. 
Clothing.  The  clothing  of  men  was, 
at  most,  the  kilt  of  linen,  or  an  animal's 
hide  put  over  the  body.  Often  only  a 
belt  was  worn,  with  three  narrow  strips 
hanging  down  in  front.  A  usual  covering 
was  a  belt  with  a  sheath  attached  to  it 
to  hold  up  the  genitals.  With  the  pleated 
kilt  was  also  worn  a  belt  having  apparently 
a  jackal  tail  hung  behind.  On  some  figures 
there  is  merely  a  double  rope  round  the 
waist.  These  various  forms  may  belong 
to  different  peoples  and  periods  ;  but 
there  are  hardly  enough  examples  to 
prove  any  distinctions,  as  the  varying 
circumstance  of  the  figures,  captive  and 
conquered,  resting  and  working,  rich 
and  poor,  in  heat  and  in  cold,  may  easily 
have  led  to  the  different  dress  that  we 
see.  Women  are  represented 
with  'a  white  linen  petticoat 
from  the  waist  to  the  feet. 
Leather  was  a  favourite 
material  for  clothing,  as  well  as  for  bags. 
It  was  painted  withi  patterns,  and  deco- 
rated with  beads,  reminding  us  of  the 
North  American  work. 

Decay  of   Civilisation.     All   of   this 
civilisation      gradually      decayed  ;       the 

241 


What 

the   People 

Wore 


HISTORY     OF    THE     WORLD 


pottery  is  seen  becoming  coarser,  good 
work  dying  out  in  rougher  copying,  new 
types  seldom  appearing,  cheaper  and 
poorer  objects  being  more  usual.  There 
is  ground,  however,  for  supposing  that 
at  some  time  in  this  age  there  was  a 
central  rule  at  Heliopolis.  There  are 
many  traditions  of  a  principality  there, 
Tu  r\tj  which  must  certainly  have 
The  Oldest  been  before  the  dynasties.  The 
^^'''^  sacred    emblem    preserved    in 

°  ^^^  the  temple  was  the  shepherd's 
crook,  haq,  which  served  for  the  title  of 
"  prince  "  in  all  later  times  ;  the  other 
sacred  emblem  was  the  whip,  and  these 
two  were  the  royal  emblems  of  Osiris. 
The  title  of  the  nome  was  "  the  princes' 
territory,"  and  this  capital  retained  in 
later  ages  the  re]mtation  of  being  the 
centre  of  learning  and  theology.  And  on 
the  fragment  of  the  early  annals  known 
as  the  "  Palermo  Stone  "  there  is  shown 


THE    EARLIEST    GAME    OF    NINEPINS 
These   ninepins,   the  gate   to   play   through,    and  the 
porphyry    balls    were    all    found    in    a    child's    grave. 

a  long  row  of  kings  of  Lower  Egypt 
before  the  dynasties  ;  these  cannot  have 
ruled  at  Memphis,  as  that  was  a  new 
foundation  by  Menes. 

History  in  Mythology.  Of  the  break- 
up of  this  civilisation  we  may  trace  some 
relation  in  the  mythology.  After  Isis 
had  recovered  the  body  of  Osiris,  and  the 
worship  of  the  Osiris  and  Isis  tribes  had 
revived  again  from  the  Semitic  invasion 
of  Set  worshippers.  Set  again 
H.Story  as    attacked    the   Osiris   worship, 

M  tholo     " ''"'^    scattered     the    body    of 
y    o  ogy     Q^-jj-jg   jj^i^Q    fourteen   parts    in 

different  places.  This  refers  probably 
to  the  distribution  of  parts  of  the  body 
to  different  districts,  when  it  was  cut 
up  in  the  funeral  ceremonies,  according 
to  prehistoric  usage.  These  parts  of 
Osiris  were  kept  at  sixteen  nomes  in 
Egypt  in  historic  times,  six  in  the  Nile 
valley  and  ten  in  the  Delta,  probably 
the  original  nomes  of  the  country.     The 

242 


End  of 

Prehistoric 

Times 


civil  discord  implied  in  this  persecution 
must  have  weakened  the  land  ;  and  then 
came  the  attack  by  the  hawk  worshippers 
from  the  south.  In  the  legend  of  Horbe- 
hudti,  or  Horus  of  Edfu,  we  read  that 
the  crocodiles  and  hippopotami  (animals 
of  Set),  attacked  him,  and  his  servants, 
armed  with  metal  weapons,  smote  and 
conquered  them,  slaying  381  before  the 
city  of  Edfu.  Then  the  worshippers  of 
Horus  allied  themselves  with  the  sun 
worshippers,  and  "  Horbehudti  changed 
his  form  into  that  of  a  winged  sun  disc," 
and  "  took  with  him  Nekhebt  the  goddess 
of  the  South  and  Uazet,  the  goddess  of 
the  North,  in  the  form  of  two  serpents, 
that  they  might  destroy  their  enemies 
in  the  bodily  forms  of  crocodiles  and 
hippopotami."  That  is  to  say,  the  Horus, 
Ra,  and  serpent  goddess  tribes  were  all 
allied  to  attack  the  domination  of  the  Set 
tribe.  They  gradually  drove  them  back, 
and  "  Set  went  forth  and  cried  out 
horribly  "  ;  he  was  finally  struck  down 
at  Pa-rehehu.  "  Thus  did  Horbehudti, 
together  with  Horus,  the  son  of 
Isis,  who  had  made  his  form  like 
unto  that  of  Horbehudti."  That 
is  to  say,  the  rest  of  the  Horus 
worshippers  joined  the  Horus-Ra  party. 

The  final  battle  and  expulsion  of  Set 
was  at  Zaru  on  the  eastern  frontier  of 
Egypt.  This,  in  mythological  form,  seems 
to  give  the  history  of  the  driving  out  of 
the  Semitic  population  of  the  later  pre- 
historic age,  by  the  dynastic  race  descend- 
ing from  Upper  Egypt,  at  the  close  of 
the  prehistoric  period.  An  actual  result 
of  this  war,  all  through  later  times,  was 
the  multitude  of  towns  named  Samhud, 
or  "  United  to  Behudti,"  marking  the 
allies  of  the  Horus  party. 

Historical  Slate  Palettes.  Of  the 
period  of  the  conquest  by  the  dynastic 
races,  which  closed  the  prehistoric  age, 
there  is  an  invaluable  series  of  monu- 
ments carved  on  slate.  These  carved  slates 
are  the  elaborated  outcome  of  the  slate 
palettes  used  for  grinding  the  face  paints 
throughout  the  prehistoric  age.  A  similar 
elaboration  of  a  simple  article  is  familiar 
in  modern  times  in  the  snuff-box.  A 
plain  receptacle  of  bone  or  wood  was 
decorated,  ])lated,  made  of  silver  and 
of  gold,  inlaid  with  diamonds  and 
painted  with  the  costliest  miniatures,  and 
yet — it  was  but  a  snuff-box.  So  the  j)lain 
slip  of  slate  was  carved  into  animal  out- 
lines, had  animals  scratched  on  it,  then 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    EGYPT 


signs  in  relief  upon  it,  and  at  last  was 
covered  with  the  most  elaborate  carvings, 
and  yet — it  was  but  a  paint  grinder, 
and  had  always  the  pan  for  colour  carved 
on  it,  exactly  of  the  shape  of  the  pans  on 
the  painters'  palettes  of  that  age.  Every 
stage  can  be  shown,  from  a  formless  slate  to 
an  artistic  scene  in  relief.  There  are  many 
stages  to  be  seen  in  the  artistic  development. 

A.  In  the  prehistoric  age  arc  the  scratched 
outlines. 

B.  The  well-incised  elephant  is  as  early  as 
s.D.  33-41  ;  and  with  it  are  those  signs  in 
low  relief. 

C.  The  high  relief  sign  is  of  s.D.  60-63. 

D.  On  the  boat  slate,  the  drawing  is  much 
more  detailed  than  on  the  boats  of  the 
Hierakonpolis  tomb  of  s.D.  63.  We  can 
hardly  separate  this  from  the  work  of  the 
artistic  new-comers,  and  it  may  well  be 
about  s.D.  70-75. 

E.  The  animal  slate  seems  to  be  next,  as 
the  treatment  of  the  lion's  hair  is  unlike  the 
following. 

F.  The  four-dog  slate,  being  a  coarser  but 
more  elaborated  design  of  the  same  type, 
may  well  be  next. 

G.  The  hut  slate  shows  for  the  first  time 
the  arrangement  of  lion's   mane   as   on  the 

*  ivory  lions  of  King  Zer. 

H.  The  gazelle  slate  shows  the  same  treat- 
ment more  advanced. 

J.  The  towns  slate  shows  the  wiry  detail 
of  muscles,  beginning  to  appear  in  archaic 
manner. 

K.  The  bull  slate  has  the  same  style 
carried  out  fully  and  finely. 

L.  The  Narmer  slate  has  a  less  forcible  and 
smoother  treatment  of  the  bull,  and  brings 
us  down  to  touch  with  the  historic  times. 

The  figures  can  be  seen  in  Capart's 
"  Primitive  Art  in  Egypt,"  where  they 
may  be  identified  by  these  letters,  corre- 
sponding to  the  paragraphs  above  :  A,  B, 
figures  61,  62  ;  C,  63  ;  D,  169  ;  E,  171-2  ; 
F, 173-4 ;  G,  170 ;  H, 177-80  ;  J,  175-6  ; 
K, 181-2;  L,  183-4. 

Racial  Types.  These  slate  carvings 
not  only  show  the  art  of  the  time,  but  they 
present  the  different  races  and  the  details 
of  their  Ufe,  more  fully  than  we  find  them 
for  many  centuries  later.  We  see  six  differ- 
ent types  of  physiognomy  in  the  early 
remains,  and  learn  how  complex  the  racial 
history  must  be  at  the  most  remote  period 
accessible  to  us. 

A.  The  acjuiline  type  is  that  of  the  principal 
prehistoric  race,  closely  like  the  Libyan  on 
the  west  and  the  Amorite  on  the  east. 
When  mixed  with  negro  it  produced  the  exact 
type  of  a  European-Negro  mulatto.  Prob- 
ably equal  to  the  Libyan.  [See  Heads  i  to 
4  on  next  page.] 


f4  EP  I  T  £  ff  f?A  rv 


£  A  N  -:-  SEA 


EGYPT  IN  THREE  PERIODS  OF  ITS 
CIVILISATION 
This  map  of  Egypt  shows  Eg-ypt  in  three  of  its  early 
periods,  (i)  The  earliest  centres  of  culture  were  at  the 
places  where  parts  of  Osiris  were  preserved  in  the 
prehistoric  age,  here  named.  (2)  The  second  period  is 
shown  by  other  centres  being  placed  in  the  right  geo- 
graphical order,  all  here  numbered  I  to  XIX,  following 
down  each  branch  of  the  Nile.  (31  The  third  period  is 
when  other  centres  were  inserted  in  the  lists  in  the 
wrong  order,  here  numbered  8  to  20.  These  three 
stages  of  Egypt's  history  are  all  before  the  monarchy. 

243 


THE    EARLIEST    PORTRAITS    OF    VARIOUS    RACES    IN    EGYPT 

Numbers  i  and  z  are  the  aquiline  type,  similar  to  3,  the  Libyan,  and  4  the  Amorite.  s  is  the  curly  hair 
type,  6  the  sharp-nosed  type,  7  the  short-nosed  type,  8  the  forward  beard  type,  9-11  the  straight-faced 
type  of  dynastic  conquerors.     12  is   King   Khafra   of  the  Pyramid   age,   reverting  to  the  original  type  of  i  and  z. 

B.  The  sharp-nosed  type,  firstly,  with   the 


hair  in  a  pigtail,  bringing  stone  vases  as 
tribute,  and  sometimes  dressed  in  long  robe  ; 
secondly,  with  bushy  hair  and  armed  with 
spear,  throw-stick,  mace,  bow  and  arrows. 
Probably  the  Arabian  mountain  race  mixed 
with  Libyan.     See  figure  6  on  this  page. 

C.  The  curly  hair  type,  with  plaited  beard, 
conquered  and  destroyed  by  type  B.  Prob- 
ably from  North  Syria,  by  sculptures  there. 
See  figure  5  on  this  page. 

D.  The  forward  beard  type,  with  close-cut 
hair  ;  much  like  the  figures  on  early  Nau- 
kratite  vases.  Probably  a  coast  people  of 
Libyan  connection.  See  figure  8  on  this  page. 

E.  The  short-nosed  tvpe,  a  variety  of  D, 
apparently  belonging  to  the  Fayum.    Fig.  7. 

F.  The  straight-faced  type  of  the  dynastic 
conquerors.     See  figures  g-ii  on  this  page. 

All  of  these  different  people.s  were  in 
continual  mixture  and  struggle  during 
the  few  centuries  before  the  first 
dynasty.      Looking    to    the    tribal    hints 

244 


given  by  the  mythology 
able  that  : 


it  seems   prob- 


A  represents  the  early  Osiris  and  Isis 
worshippers  ;  B  the  first  dominance  of  Set  ; 
C  the  second  irruption  of  Set  ;  D  and  E  the 
allied  Osiris  and  Isis  worshippers  of  the 
Delta  and  coast  who  helped  to  expel  Set  ; 
and  F  the  hawk  Horus  worshipjiers,  who  took 
the  lead  in  driving  out  B  and  C  by  alliance 
with  A,  D  and  E. 

Dynastic  Race.  The  most  essential 
difference  between  the  prehistoric  and  the 
dynastic  people  is  in  their  artistic  capacity. 
The  earlier  peoples,  though  highly  skilled 
in  mechanical  detail  and  handling,  were 
yet  very  crude  in  their  copying  of  any 
natural  forms.  But  as  soon  as  we  reach 
the  dynastic  race  we  find  that  there  is  an 
artistic  .sense  and  power  in  their  work,  which 
puts  even  the  roughest  of  it  far  above  all 
that  had  gone  before.  The  earliest  examples 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    EGYPT 


of  their  sculpture  appear  to  be  the 
colossal  figures  of  the  god  Min,  found  at 
Koptos.  These  are  of  the  most  primitive 
style  possible,  the  limbs  scarcely  marked 
off  from  the  trunk,  and  no  details  of  form 
attem])ted.  But  on  the  side  of  each  there 
is  a  patch  of  hammer-work  outlining 
some  figures,  perhaps  a  copy  of  embroi- 
deries on  a  skin  pouch  hung  at  the  side. 
These  are  figures  of  a  deer's  head  and 
pteroceras  shells  on  one,  svvordfish, 
shells,  and  standards  of  the  god  on  an- 
other, and  the  same  objects,  together  with 
an  ostrich,  elephant,  hyaena,  and  calf  on 
the  third.  All  are  but  roughly  hammered 
round,  yet  the  spirit  and  correct  forms 
of  the  animals  are  of  an  entirely  different 
order  from  anything  that  had  yet  appeared 
in  Egypt.  The  promise  of  all  the  artistic 
triumphs  of  thousands  of 
years  to  come  is  clearly  seen 
in  these  decorations  of  the 
rudest  statues  known. 
The  source  of  this  dynastic  race  can 
only  be  inferred.  Though  marked  off 
from  the  earlier  inhabitants  by  their 
artistic  taste,  and  by  their  use  of 
hieroglyphic  writing,  we  know  so  very 
little  of  the  early  history  of  any  other 


Mystery 
of  Dynastic 
Race 


Earliest 
Promise  of 
Greatness 


lands  near  Egypt  that  we  cannot  yet 
trace  any  link  to  their  original  source.  On 
looking  in  various  directions,  it  seems  at 
least  clear  that  they  do  not  belong  to  the 
southern  tribes,  to  which  they  have  no 
resemblance  ;  nor  can  we  suppose  that  the 
Libyans,  who  appear  to  be  one 
with  the  prehistoric  people, 
would  also  supply  a  race  so 
different  in  face  and  in  habits. 
The  north  and  Syria  seem  barred  by  the 
earliest  centres  being  at  Abydos  and 
Hierakonpolis  in  the  south  of  Egypt,  from 
which  they  conquered  the  north. 

Lastly,  no  source  seems  open  except  the 
East,  the  road  from  which  joined  the  Nile 
at  Koptos.  It  is  there  that  the  earliest 
statues  have  been  found,  and  the  decora- 
tion on  those  comprises  the  swordfish  and 
pteroceras  shell  belonging  to  the  Red  Sea. 
Such  seems  to  have  been  the  road  of  the 
dynastic  race  into  Egypt  ;  but  the 
origin  of  that  race  yet  awaits  research. 
There  are  undoubtedly  some  Babylonian 
elements  in  their  culture,  and  somewhere 
at  the  south  end  of  the  Red  Sea  lay  Punt — 
the  "  divine  land "  of  the  Egyptians. 
Thus  we  are  tempted  to  look  to  some 
migration  from  Southern  Arabia,  whence 


THE    FIRST    PROMISE    OF    THE    ARTISTIC    TRIUMPHS    OF    EGYPT 

These  animal  figures  were  wrought  by  hammering  around  on  the  surface  of  the  colossal  statue  of  the  god  Min, 
found  at  Koptos,  and  show  the  beginning  of  the  wonderful  art  of  Ancient  Egypt.  It  is  the  work  of  the  earliest 
dynastic  people,  who  have  passed  beyond  the  stage  of  making  rude  scratches  on  walls  and  on  pottery,  and 
have  arrived,  as  the  figures  of  the  ox  and  the  hyaena  prove,  at  a  real  conception  of  the  methods  of  sculpture. 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


also  may  have  proceeded  the  kindred 
Sumerian  culture,  a  few  centuries  later. 
From  this  centre  in  Pun,  or  Punt,  it  may 
have  conquered  and  colonised  Egypt,  and 
then  later  passed  on  up  the  Red  Sea 
to  the  coast  of  the  Poeni  and  their  later 
Punic  colony — Phoenicia  and  Carthage. 
Such  is  a  pleasing  co-ordination,  but 
Tk  \iA  k  whether  we  shall  ever  recover 
Con  Tenors  *^^  evidence  to  prove  or 
onqucrors  (jjc^prove  it  hangs  upon  the 
chance  of  the  past  and  the 
activity  of  the  future. 

Conquest  of  Egypt.  The  conquest  of 
Egypt  spread  down  from  the  south  to  the 
north.  The  earliest  centres  were  Abydos 
and  Hierakonpolis.  Probably  Edfu  was 
as  important,  or  more  so ;  but  the  great 
Ptolemaic  temple  there  being  still  com- 
plete, the  remains  of  the  earliest  kingdom 
are  sealed  beneath  its  pavements.  The 
conquest  must  have  been  a  gradual  pro- 
cess ;  it  is  described  as  such  in  the  myth, 
many  times  and  in  many  successive  places 
was  Set  defeated  and  repelled.  And  the 
probability  is  that  tribal  war  of  such  a 
kind  would  only  gradually  transfer  district 
after  district  from  one  holder  to  the  next. 
We  know  how  in  England  the  conquest 
occupied  three  centuries,  from  the  Saxon 
landing  to  the  first  Saxon  king  of  all  the 
land.     So    it    may    well    have    been    in 

Egypt- 

We  read  in  Manetho  of  ten  kings  of 
Thinis  (Abydos)  who  ruled  for  350  years 
before  the  first  dynasty  of  kings  of  all 
Egypt.  And  we  know,  from  the  fragment  of 
the  Palermo  Stone,  that  at  least  thirteen 
kings  of  Lower  Egypt  were  recorded  before 
the  first  dynasty.  It  is  obvious  from  this, 
and  from  the  probabilities  of  the  conquest, 
that  there  were  Kings  of  Upper  Egypt 
before  the  first  dynasty  ;  and  there  is  no 
reason  for  not  accepting  this  statement  of 
Manetho  as  being  equally  correct  with  his 
account  of  the  first  dynasty,  which  we  can 
verify.  Of  the  actual  course  of  the  con- 
„.  quest,  one   fragment  of     carved 

g'j  slate   has  preserved  the    record. 

Histo  Seven  towns  are  represented 
upon  it,  each  attacked  by  one 
animal  of  the  standards  of  the  allies. 
These  towns  may  be  tolerably  identified 
by  comparing  the  hieroglyphics  placed 
within  them  with  the  names  known  in 
historic  times.  The  upper  row  of  four 
towns  seem  to  be  Mem  in  the  Fayum, 
Hipponon,  Pa-rehehui,  and  possibly 
Abydos  ;    and  the  lower  three  towns  were 

246 


probably  in  the  delta,  though  there  are 
the  uncertainties  of  two  northern  similar 
names. 

Dynasty  O.  The  contemporary  remains 
that  appear  to  belong  to  this  age  of  the 
Rings  of  Abydos  (which  we  may  call 
Dynasty  O)  are  the  tomb  chambers  and 
funeral  objects  in  the  royal  cemetery  at 
Abydos.  The  plan  of  that  cemetery 
shows  a  sequence  of  each  later  tomb 
being  placed  next  to  the  previous  tomb, 
and  generally  a  receding  further  back  into 
the  desert  as  time  went  on.  Now,  in 
front  of  the  tomb  of  Zer,  the  second  king 
of  the  first  dynasty,  there  are  three  large 
tombs  alike,  and  four  lesser  ones.  As 
objects  of  Mena,  the  first  king,  were  found 
here,  the  other  tombs  are  presumably 
those  of  six  kings  before  the  first  dynasty, 
by  their  position.  The  actual  objects  found 
in  these  tombs  are  all  of  a  more  archaic 
style  than  those  of  ]\Iena  or  any  later  king. 
The  tombs  themselves  are  all  lesser  and 
simpler  than  those  of  Zer  and  later  kings. 
And  the  names  of  kings  found  here  are  all 
without  the  vulture  and  urseus  title,  but 
with  only  neb  neb,  the  double  lordship  of 

■  Egypt.     The  whole  of  the  evi- 

/*^f^  dence,  therefore,  goes  to  show 

of  Unknown    ,1      .  1  •        .        1  r 

„.  that    we    have   six    tombs    of 

'"^^^  the  Thinite  kings  before  Menes. 

The  names  of  these  earlier  kings,  so  far 
as  we  trace  them,  are  Ka,  Ro,  Zeser,  Zar, 
Nar,  and  Sma.  Of  these,  Nar,  or  Narmer, 
has  the  most  important  remains — part 
of  an  ebony  tablet,  and  an  alabaster 
jar  from  his  tomb,  and  the  great  slate 
palette,  a  great  mace  head,  with  scene 
of  a  festival,  and  an  ivory  cylinder, 
from  Hierakonpolis.  The  next  in  im- 
portance is  Zar,  or  the  "  Scorpion 
King,"  of  whom  there  is  a  great  carved 
mace  head,  and  also  some  vases.  The 
objects  of  the  carvings  appear  to  be 
celebrations  of  the  sed  festival ;  this 
appears  originally  to  have  been  the  slaying 
of  the  king  every  thirty  years,  making 
him  Osiris,  one  with  the  god,  while  his 
daughter  was  married  to  the  new  king. 
By  the  time  of  these  carvings,  it  appears 
that  the  king  took  the  place  of  Osiris  in 
the  ceremonials,  and  his  successor  mas- 
queraded as  the  new  king,  and  was  hence- 
forth the  crown  prince — the  heir  to  the 
kingdom. 

There  were  brought  to  the  festival  of 
Narmer  120,000  captives,  400,000  oxen, 
1,422,000  goats ;  and  the  system  of 
numeration  was  as  complete  before  Menes 


A  FESTIVAL    SCENE  OVER  7,000  YEARS    AGO,  IN  THE   REIGN    OF  KING  NARMER,  5,500    B.C. 

...  .  .  ,    %      f  ji    _     /-  __i    J i.__    «r    i_:„^^    ^f   oil 


A  record  of  the  festival  of  Narmer,  a  king  of  Abydos  who  reigned  before  the  first  dynasty  of  km&s  of  all 
Egypt.  It  indicates  that  when  the  festival  of  his  own  death  was  celebrated  in  accordance  with  the  ancient 
custom  of  killing  the  king  every  thirty  years  to  make  him  one  with  Osins  the  god,  no  f^^^";  tha"  i^o  ooo  capt  v^^^ 
400,000  oxen,  and  1,422,000  goats  were  offered.    The  numerical  system  is  here  seen  to  be  complete  up  to  milUons. 


and 
Building 


as  it  was  in  any  later  time.  The  other 
mace  head  of  King  Zar  shows  part  of  the 
festival,  and  also  the  ceremony  of  the 
king  hoeing  the  bank  of  a  canal,  probably 
at  the  inundation.  We  see  the  reclama- 
tion of  the  land,  with  men  busy  embanking 
the  canals,  and  cultivating  a 
Planting  pQ\ra  tree  in  an  enclosure  of 
reeds,  while  they  lived  in  reed 
huts  with  plaited  dome  tops, 
and  used  boats  with  a  very  high,  upright 
stem.  The  carved  slate  palette  of  Narmer 
shows  him  grasping  the  chief  of  the  Fayum, 
prepared  to  smite  him,  a  scene  which  was 
repeated  for  five  thousand  years  in  all  the 
Egyptian  triumphs.  The  metal  water- 
pot  and  sandals  are  carried  behind  the 
king  by  his  body  servant.  On  the  other 
side  of  the  palette  is  the  king  going  to  a 
triumphal  ceremony,  preceded  by  the 
scribe,  thet,  and  four  men  of  different 
types  bearing  the  standards  of  the  army, 
possibly  connected  with  the  four  terri- 
torial divisions  of  the  army  found  under 
Ramessu  II.  Before  them  lie  ten  slain 
enemies,  with  their  heads  cut  off  and  put 
between  their  legs.  The  carving  of  the 
detail,  and  particularly  the  muscular 
anatomy  of  the   king's   figure,   is   extra- 


ordinarily fine  and  firm,  and  as  true  as 
any  work  of  later  time. 

Written  History.  Having  now  dealt 
with  the  history  as  drawn  from  the 
remains  which  have  come  to  light,  we  now 
enter  from  this  point  on  the  continuous 
written  history,  which  has  come  down 
from  hand  to  hand  without  a  break 
to  our  own  times,  during  over  seven 
thousand  years.  This  history  was  com- 
piled by  the  high- priest  and  scribe  Manetho 
of  Sebennytos  in  the  Delta,  and  only  a 
fragment  of  his  work  has  been  preserved 
on  its  full  scale  ;  but  three  later  writers 
have  given  epitomes  of  it,  and  it  is  on  their 
lists  that  we  have  to  depend.  These  are 
Julius  Africanus  (221  a.d.),  Eusebius  (326 
A.D.),  and  George  the  Syncellus  (792  a.d.). 

Unfortunately,  much  confusion  has  been 
caused  by  scholars  not  being  content  to 
accept  Manetho  as  being 
The  Men  Who  s^ibstantially  correct  in  the 
Handed  Down  ^^^-^^  though  with  many 
the  Story  small  corruptions  and  errors. 

Nearly  every  historian  has  made  large 
and  arbitrary  assumptions  and  changes, 
with  a  view  to  reducing  the  length  of 
time  stated.  But  recent  discoveries  seem 
to  prove  that  we  must  accept  the  lists  as 

247 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


An  Ancient 
Historian  and 
His  Figures 


having  been  correct,  however  they  may 
have  suffered  in  detail.  A  favourite 
supposition  has  been  that  the  dynasties 
named  were  arbitrary  divisions  of  later 
times  ;  but  the  earlier  lists  also  show  such 
divisions  as  far  back  as  the  eighteenth 
dynasty,  and  kings  founding 
a  d3masty  used  to  copy  the 
titles  of  the  founder  of  the 
previous  dynasty,  showing 
that  the  change  was  recognised  at  the  time. 
Another  idea  has  been  that  the  dynasties 
were  contemporary.  But,  on  the  contrary, 
in  the  overlapping  of  the  tenth  and 
eleventh  and  also  the  twenty-fifth  and 
twenty-sixth  dynasties,  we  can  trace  that 
Manetho  was  very  careful  to  cut  off  from 
one  dynasty  all  the  time  which  he  allows 
to  another.  As  regards  the  general 
character  of  the  whole  length  of  time,  we 
can  show  that  Manetho's  version  in  271  B.C. 
at  Sebennytos  was  the  same  as  that  given 
to  Herodotus  two  hundred  years  earlier  at 
Memphis.  Herodotus  was  told  that  from 
Menes  to  his  time  were  330  kings,  and 
the  totals  of  Manetho  are  192  4-96  -1-50 
to  Artaxerxes  -^  338,  so  that,  in  spite  of 
corrujition  in  de- 
tail, the  totals 
seem  to  have 
been  correctly 
maintained. 

In  earlier  times 
we  can  compare 
Manetho  with  the 
fragments  of  the 
Turin  papyrus, 
written  in  the 
eighteenth  d  y  - 
nasty ;  and  here, 
in  one  of  the 
most  disputable 
points — the  kings 
of  the  thirteenth 
dynasty  —  the 
average  of  eleven 
reigns  legible  in 
the  papyrus  is 
(ih  years,  and 
Manetho  states 
sixty  kings  in  453 
years,  or  7  i  years' 
average.  The 
general  character 
of  a  great  number  of  short  reigns  in  this  age 
IS  quite  su])ported.  Then  in  the  eighteenth 
dynasty  there  is  a  rising  of  Sirius  in  the 
movable  calendar,  in  the  twelfth  dynasty 
another  rising  of  Sirius,  and  some  seasonal 

248 


THE     EARLIEST    DETAILED    SCULPTURE 

This  carved  slate  palette  of  King  Narmer  shows  him  grasping  the 
chief  of  the  Fayuni,  prepared  to  smite  him,  a  scene  which  was 
repeated  for  five  thousand  years  in  all  the  Egyptian  triumphs. 
The  sculpture  shows  anatomical  treatment  for  the  first  time  in  art. 


dates,  and  in  the  sixth  dynasty  are  two 
seasonal  dates.  [Owing  to  the  ignoring  of 
leap  year,  the  Egyptian  months  shifted 
round  the  seasons  in  1,4(50  years  ;  hence  any 
seasonal  date  can  only  recur  once  in  1,460 
years,  and  fixes  an  absolute  date  in  that 
cycle.]  All  of  these  agree  with  Manetho  ; 
and  though  the  seasonal  dates  are  vague, 
they  at  least  show  that  there  is  not  an 
error  of  several  centuries  in  the  total.  In 
the  earliest  times  there  is  the  account  of 
the  first  dynasty,  the  names  and  succession 
of  which  are  verified  by  the  sculptured 
lists  in  the  nineteenth  dynasty  and  by 
the  actual  graves  of  the  kings.  Every 
accurate  test  that  we  can  apply  shows 
the  general  trustworthiness  of  Manetho, 
apart  from  minor  corruptions. 

.  It   is   naturally  a   question 

a  eria    or    ^j^g^^  ^^^^  q{  material  existed 

r'^,°'^i..°  for  an  accurate  historv  of  the 
Early  Times  ,      ,  ■  t-,       r       "  ^     r 

early  times.     1  he  fragment  01 

annals  known  as  the  Palermo  Stone  was 
engraved  in  the  fifth  dynasty,  and  it 
recorded  the  principal  events  of  all  the 
years  back  to  the  beginning  of  the  king- 
dom, a  thousand  years  before,  the  height  of 
the  Nile  for  every 
year,  the  length 
of  every  king's 
reign  and  of  in- 
terregnum to  the 
exact  days.  With 
such  a  record  of 
the  most  remote 
times  carefully 
maintained  we 
have  every 
reason  to  sup- 
pose that  the 
high-priests  and 
sacred  scribes 
had  adequate  in- 
formation as  to 
the  genera] 
course  of  their 
history.  And  we 
can  see  by  the 
Turin  papyrus 
how  in  the 
eighteenth  dy- 
nasty there  was 
a  full  historical 
list    of     all     the 


kings,  with  their  length  of  reigns,  dynasties, 
and  summations  of  numbers  and  years  at 
each  of  the  large  divisions.  Thus  it  is 
proved  that  there  were  historians  at 
various  periods  who  compiled  and  edited 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    EGYPT 


o 

■rt 
n 


IM 


III! 


11 II 


rii5 


II 


H 


A    RECORD    OF    EVENTS    IN    4750    B.C. 

A  part  of  early  annals  known  as  the  Palermo  Stone. 
Each  compartment  contains  the  events  of  one  year,  with 
the  height  of  the  Nile  in  cubits  stated  below  it.  The 
lower  right  division  records  :  "  Building  of  a  ship  170  feet 
long,  and  of  60  ships  100  feet  long.  Conquest  of  negroes, 
bringing  4,ock>  men,  3,000  women,  and  200,000  cattle. 
Building  a  wall  of  the  palaces  of  King  Sneferu.  Bring- 
ing 40  ships  of  cedar  (from  Syria)."  The  left  division 
reads  :  "  Making  35  hunting  lodges  and  122  tanks  for 
cattle.  Building  a  ship  of  cedar  170  feet  long,  and 
two    other    ships  of   170  feet.      7th  census  of  cattle." 

the  history,  and  so  provided  a  soHd  ground- 
work for  later  writers,  such  as  Manetho. 

The  materials  that  we  have  for  studying 

the  civilisation  of  the  early  dynasties  are 

the  royal  tombs  and  steles,  the 

E  /  ^  *^  tablets  of  the  annals,  the  seal- 
C'v'r'^  V  ^'^S^  ^^  ofificials,  the  inscribed 
stone  bowls,  glazed  pottery, 
ivory,  and  wood,  the  rock  steles  of  Sinai, 
fragments  of  buildings  of  the  second 
dynasty  and  onward,  the  steles  of  private 
persons  and  their  graves. 

Royal  Tombs.  The  tombs  show  that 
brickwork  was  familiar  on  a  large  scale. 
The  prehistoric  houses  and  tomb  chambers 
were  by  no  means  slight.  The  town  at 
Naqada  has  house- walls  about  two  feet 
thick,  and  a  town  wall  nearly  eight  feet 
thick.  The  brick-lined  tombs  are  some- 
times as  large  as  8  ft.  by  12  ft.  The  kings' 
tombs  of  Dynasty  O  are  about  10  ft.  by 
20  ft.  Those  of  Narmer,  Sma,  and  Mena 
are  about  17  ft.  by  26  ft.,  with  walls  5  ft. 
to  7  ft.  thick.  Under  Zer  there  is  a  great 
extension  ;  the  brick  pit  is  39  ft.  by  43  ft.  ; 
it  contained  a  wooden  chamber  28  ft.  by 
34  ft.,  and  it  was  surrounded  by  many 
rows  of  graves — 318  in  all.  The  later 
tombs  of  the  first  dynasty  are  less .  im- 


In  the 
Kings' 
Tombs 


posing.  At  the  end  of  the  second  dynasty 
the  tomb  of  Khasekhemui  consisted  of 
fifty-eight  chambers  covering  a  ground 
223  ft.  long  and  40  ft.  wide.  The  sizes  of 
bricks  were  between  9  in,  and  10  in.  long, 
half  as  wide,  and  under  3  in.  thick,  in 
the  prehistoric  and  through 
the  first  and  second  dynasties. 
Wood  was  used  on  a  large 
scale.  The  royal  tombs  show 
beams  for  framing  of  about  10  in.  wide 
and  7  in.  deep,  and  18  ft.  or  20  ft.  long, 
and  these  beams  supported  chamber  sides 
and  floors  formed  of  planks  2  in.  or  3  in. 
thick.  The  roof  was  made  of  similar 
beams,  covered  with  boards  and  mats, 
which  sustained  3  ft.  or  4  ft.  of  sand 
laid  over  the  tomb.  Such  was  an 
extension  of  the  roofs  of  poles  and 
brushwood  which  were  laid  over  the 
prehistoric  tombs,  and  over  the  lesser 
tombs  of  the  officials  of  the  early  kings. 
The  sign  for  royal  architect  in  the  earliest 
inscriptions  is  that  of  a  carpenter,  the 
"  two-axe  man." 

The  stone  steles  were  of  limestone  in  the 
first  dynasty,  and  in  the  end  of  the 
first  dynasty  the  steles  of  Oa  are  of 
black  quartzose  stone.  Those  of  Perabsen 
in  the  second  dynasty  are  of  very  tough 
syenite.  The  carving  of  all  these  is  in  high 
relief,  finely  and  boldly  cut  in  a  simple, 
clear  style.  At  the  end  of  the  second 
dynasty  a  stone-built  chamber  appears  for 
the  first  time  ;  the  blocks  have  naturally 
cloven  surfaces  so  far  as  possible,  and  the 
rest  of  the  faces  are  dressed  with  a  flint 
adze.  Of  the  same  reign  of  Khasekhemui 
there  is  a  granite  door- jamb  with  signs  in 
high  relief.  Granite  had  already  been 
wrought  flat  for  pavements  in  the  previous 
dynasty,  at  the  tomb  of  Den. 

Tablets  of  Annals.  The  greater  part 
of  the  inscriptions  of  this  age  are  on  small 
square  tablets  of  el)ony  and  of  ivory,  which 
were  found  in  the  royal  tombs.  These 
each  have  a  hole  in  the  top  corner,  and  the 
sign  of  a  year — the  palm  stick 
gyp  s  — down  the  side,  as  there  is  by 
P  .  the  side  of  the  entries  of  the 
events  of  each  year  on  the  early 
annals.  They  thus  appear  to  be  each  the 
record  of  a  year,  and  to  have  been  strung 
together  by  the  corner  holes.  There  has 
not  yet  been  any  authoritative  study  of 
the  meaning  of  these  earliest  inscriptions, 
which  are  very  difficult  to  understand, 
owing  to  the  transitory  condition  of  ideo- 
graphs having  not  yet  yielded  to  syllabic 

249 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


usage.  ■   We   can,    however,    glean   many 

]:)oints  about  the  civiUsation  from  them. 

The  towns  were  fortified  with  battlemented 

walls.   The  shrines  were  small  sanctuaries, 

with  a  large  court  in  front,  like  the  temple 

_,.    „  courts  of  later  times.     At  the 

1  he  Honour        ,  j.     j.i_  j.  ^ 

.      „.  entrance  to  the  court  were  two 

Di^d  foT^  ^^^^  P°^^^'  apparently  with  flags, 
which  later  developed  into  the 
row  of  masts  with  streamers  in  front  of  the 
pylon.  The  great  festival  at  the  close  of 
each  thirty  years  was  one  of  the  most 
important,  already  noticed  here  under 
Narmer.  The  sanctuary  for  it  had  two 
shrines  back  to  back,  each  with  a  flight  of 
steps,  apparently  for  Upper  and  Lower 
Egypt.  The  dancing  of  the  new  king,  or 
the  crown  prince  as  king,  before  the  old 
Osirified  king  in  the  shrine,  was  one  of  the 
main  events  of  the  feast.  The  types  of 
temple  furniture  were  already  fixed  in  the 
forms  which  lasted  for  several  thousand 
years  ;  the  barks  of  Harakhti  are  shown 
with  the  same  hangings  at  the  prow,  and 
are  double — for  the  E.  and  Wv— as  in  the 
temple  of  Sety  I.  Large  bowls  of  electrum 
were  offered  in  the  temples  by  the  king. 


Wild  cattle  were  hunted  by  trap  nets, 
as  was  done  much  later  in  Greece.  And 
there  is  shown  a  long  road,  with  rest- 
houses  and  palm-trees,  leading  up  to  the 
great  temple  in  the  reign  of  King  Zer. 

Sealings.  The  clay  sealings  of  officials 
show  much  of  the  organisation  of  the 
country.  The  oldest  titles,  under  Zer, 
are  the  "  Commander  of  the  Inundation  " 
and  "  Commander  of  the  Cattle."  In 
the  reign  of  Zet  we  find  a  "  Commander 
of  the  Elders  "  and  "  Archon,"  or  chief 
of  the  city  ;  also  the  temple  property, 
or  "  Inheritance  of  the  Chief  God,"  is 
named.  Under  Merneit  and  Den  there  is 
a  prince  (ha).  The  vizier  was  "  Commander 
of  the  Centre,"  probably  the  major  do  mo 
of  the  Court,  and  also  "  Over-head  of  the 
Commanders."  There  are  further 
named  a  "  Royal  Sealer  of  the 
Vat  of  Neit,"  the  "  winepress  of 
the  north,"  and  a  "  Deputy  of 
the  Treasury."  In  later  reigns  there  is  an 
"  Over-head  "  of  a  city.  And  under  the 
second  dynasty  the  titles  are  "Royal Sealer 
of  all  Deeds,"  "  Scribe  of  Accounts  of  Pro- 
visions,"   "  Sealer  of  Northern  Tribute," 


Officers 
of  the 
Empire 


A    RECORD    OF    A    YEARS    EVENTS  :    EBONY    TABLET    OF    KING    MENA,    5500    B.C. 

The  greater  part  of  the  inscriptions  of  the  first  dynasty  are  on  small  square  tablets  of  ebony  and  of  ivory.  These  each 
have  a  hole  in  the  top  corner,  and  the  sign  of  a  year  -the  palm  stick— dowrn  the  side.  They  thus  appear  to  be  each 
the  record  of  a  year,  and  to  have  been  strung  together  by  the  corner  holes.    They  were  found  scattered  in  the  tombs, 

250 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    EGYPT 


"Collector  of 
Lotus  Seed,"  and 
"  Chief  Man  Under 
the  King."  These 
titles  are  from  but 
a  very  small  part 
of  the  bureau- 
cracy, only  those 
whose  seals  were 
affixed  to  the  royal 
provision  w  h  i  c  h 
was  placed  in  the 
tomb  ;  but  they 
suffice  to  show  the 
regular  organisa- 
tion of  the  govern- 
ment at  that  age. 

Stone  Vases. 
The  stone  vases  for 
the  royal  palaces 
were  cut  in  many 
kinds  of  hard  rock. 
The  rarer  kinds  are 
rock  crystal,  ser- 
pentine, and 
basalt ;  limestones, 

porphyry  and  syenite  were  more  usual ; 
and  the  commonest  materials  were  meta- 
morphic  rocks  formed  from  volcanic  ash 
verging  into  slate,  dolomite,  marble,  and 
alabaster.  These  materials  were  mostly 
selected  for  their  beauty.  The  red  por- 
phyry is  the  rarest,  being  only  known 
in  a  bowl  of  the  time  of  Mena,  and  two 
prehistoric  pieces.  Black  porphyry  with 
very  large  detached  white  crystals  belongs 


TOMBS    OF    KING    ZER     OF    THE     FIRST     DYNASTY,    5400    B.C. 
Brickwork  was   common   in  the   houses  and   tomb-chambers    of  the   prehistoric   period, 
and   in    the   time   of    the    kings    of    Abydos    the   building    of    the  tombs    was    greatly 
extended      Here  are  seen  the   brick  partitions  to  contam    offenngs,   around  a  wooden 
chamber  now  destroyed.     Beyond  this  all  round  were  318  graves  of  the  royal  servants. 

working  of  the  inside  was  always  done  by 
grinding  with  blocks,  sometimes  having  first 
removed  the  axis  by  a  tube  drill  hole.  The 
outside  was  dressed  by  chipping,  hammer- 
dressing,  and  hand  polishing  ;  sometimes 
done  by  circular  motion  on  a  block,  but 
often  by  crossing  work  by  hand.  The 
readiness  with  which  oval  forms  were 
made  shows  how  little  depended  on 
circular  motion. 

The  use  of  glazing  had  been   already 
invented  early  in  the  prehistoric  age,  as  far 
back  as  s.d.  31  ;  but  it  was  only  applied 
to  beads  and  small  amulets.     The  earliest 
glazed  pottery  vase  known  is  of 
Mena,   and  this  has  his  name 
in   violet   glaze   inlaid   in    the 
green     glazed     body.     Glazed 
vases  continued  to  be  made  throughout 
the  first  and  second  dynasties,  but  became 
rarer,    and    they    have    not    been    found 
revived  till  much  later  times.    But  ivory 
and  wood  were  largely  used  for  carved 
objects,    sometimes    of   elaborate   design. 
One  of  the  most  distinguishing  points  of 
the  age  of  the  early  kings  was  the  minute 
carving  in  imitation  of  leafage  and  basket- 
work,   which  was  mainly  done   in  slate, 
but  also  in  wood.    The  fragments  which 
remain    show    most    elaborate    patterns 
worked    out    with    minute    attention    to 
detail.       Nothing   of    the    same    kind    is 
known  in  any  other  age. 


Two- 

Colour 

Glazing 


THE  SEAL  OF  AN  EGYPTIAN  OFFICIAL 
Much  exact  knowledge  of  the  life  of  ancient  Egypt 
is  derived  from  the  clay  seals  of  high  officials.  The 
oldest  known  titles  are  those  of  "  Commander  of  the 
Inundation."  The  seal  here  is  that  of  the  "  Southern 
Sealer  of  all  Documents  of  King  Sekhem-ab,"  5100  B.C. 

only  to  the  age  of  Mena.  Pink  granite, 
blue-grey  volcanic  ash,  the  quartz  crystal, 
and  the  pink  limestones  are  all  very 
beautiful  materials.  The  hardness  does 
not  seem  to  have  been  aught  but  an 
attraction,  as  the  finest  work  is  always  put 
on  the  best  materials  ;  whereas  the  soft 
alabaster  and  slate  did  not  seem  to 
challenge  any  great  amount  of  care.     The 


251 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


the  Pyramid 
Builders 


Monuments,  There  are  but  few  monu- 
mental remains  from  these  early  dynasties. 
The  great  rock-cut  scene  of  Semerkhet 
conquering  a  Bedawy  chief  in  Sinai  is 
the  main  example.  The  figures  are  only 
.  summarily  cut   in   the  natural 

Remains        ^^^^  ^^  ^^^  sandstone  :  but  the 

ScuMull"    ^™^^    °^    ^^^  °"^^^"^  '^^  ^^^^^^ 
cu  p  ure      ^j^^j^   jjQ   g^j^y  q{  ^i^g  jnore  pre- 
tentious   work    of    later    times    in    that 
region.      The    scene     of     Sanekht — early 
third  dynasty — is  much  poorer,  and  that 
of  his  successor,  Zeser,  is  scarcely  legible, 
the  work  is  so  rude  and  slight.  The  private 
tablets  which  were  put  over  the  graves 
around  the  royal  tombs  show   that   the 
fine  work  was  limited  to  a  small  number 
of  royal  artists  in  the  first  dynasty,  and 
that  there  was  no  general  school  of  able 
men  such  as  arose    in  later  times.      The 
figures      and    hieroglyphics     are     rudely 
hammered  out,  and   the 
drawing    is    but  clumsy. 
There    is    seldom    more 
than    just    the   name    of 
the    deceased.      By    the 
time   of   Den   many   are 
distinguished       as       the 
Akhn-ka,    the    "  glorious 
soul"  ;  while  there  is  also 
a  class  apparently  named 
"  people  of    King  Setui, 
daughter  of  the  captive  " 
— i.e.,  slaves  born  of  cap- 
tives taken  in  his  wars. 

It  appears  that  the  use 
of  fine  materials  was  at 
its  height  under  Mena 
and  Zer.  Zer  has  the 
largest  and  best  -  built 
tomb,  Zet  shows  the 
greatest  delicacy  in  work, 
and  Den  seems  to  have 
had  the  most  showy  ob- 
jects. The  changes  in 
about  five  generations 
here  were  much  like  those 
in  an  equal  time  from 
Amenhotep  I    to  III.  m        ^he  earliest    sculpture        .  ,.   .,     , 

tne     eighteenth     dynasty.     There  are  but  few  monumental  remains  from    individualism 

Then  decay  markedly  set    the  early  dynasties.    The  great  rock-cut  highest     plane     of     ab- 

•„       „  1     ,1  "^  scene  of  Semerkhet,  of  which  this  shows  a         "        .        ^ 

in,  ana    there  was    no    re-      part,  is  the  main  example.    The  figures  are    StraCtlOU. 

vival  until  the  Pyramid    3°a"n^dsTor;"bi;t^?L'VrSth"of^'hl'ruufiets       Under  the  twelfth  dy- 

Kings.    But  some  develop-      better  than  in  any  of  the  more  pretentious    nasty    the    personality    is 

ment  in  the  use  of  """'^  °^  ^^'^'  ^'"^^^  '"  *^«  ^^""^  '^^'°"-  weaker  and  the  style 
materials  went  on  ;  and  Zeser,  of  the  third  that  of  a  formal  school,  highly  trained 
dynasty,  is  .said  to  have  built  a  stone  palace;  but  dependent  upon  training.  In  the 
while  Khasekhemui,  a  generation  earlier,  eighteenth  dynasty  the  vivacity  of  expres- 
had  a  limestone  chamber  for  his  tomb,  sion  is  directed  to  a  purely  personal  appeal, 
252 


and  carved  granite  for  the  door- jambs 
of  his  temple,  at  about  4950  B.C.  These 
instances  are  the  earliest  use  of  stone 
for  construction  that  are  yet  known  ; 
though  as  early  as  the  middle  of  the  first 
dynasty  King  Den  had  a  pavement  of 
red  granite  in  part  of  his  tomb. 

Pyramid  Building.  We  now  approach 
to  the  well-known  age  of  the  pyramid 
builders,  when  the  civilisation  appears 
at  its  highest  development  in  most 
respects.  We  shall  not  deal  with  this 
in  detail,  as  it  falls  into  the 
^*  °  ordinary       historical       period 

which  appears  elsewhere  in  this 
work  [see  Egypt] .  But  it  may 
be  useful  to  give  the  most  essential 
facts  of  the  material  civili.'^ation,  which 
may  otherwise  be  lost  sight  of  in  the 
mass  of  the  history. 

In  stonework  the  accuracy  reached  its 
highest  point  in  the  fourth 
dynasty,  when  the  Pyra- 
mid of  Khufu  was  con- 
structed with  an  average 
error  of  less  than  i  in 
15,000  of  length,  and  even 
less  in  angle.  The  later 
work  fell  off  from  this 
accuracy  ;  but  in  the 
twelfth  dynasty  the 
granite  sarcophagus  of 
Senusert  II.  was  wrought 
with  an  average  error  in 
straightness  and  parallel- 
ism of  under  seven  - 
thousandths  of  an  inch, 
and  an  error  of  propor- 
tions between  different 
parts  of  less  than  three- 
hundredths  of  an  inch. 
There  was  no  attempt  to 
reach  this  high  degree  of 
accuracy  in  the  later 
work.  In  sculpture  the 
main  character  of  the 
work  of  the  Pyramid 
kings  is  its  dignity  and 
grandeur,  representing 
on       the 


THE    BUILDING    OF    THE    PYRAMIDS     IN    THE    ZENITH     OF    EGYPTIAN    CIVILISATION 

The  age  of  the  Pyramid  builders  may  be  regarded  as  the  height  of  Egyptian  civilisation.  The  greatest  accuracy  in 
stonework  was  reached  during  the  fourth  dynasty,  when  the  Pyramid  of  Cheops,  or  Khufu,  was  constructed  with  an 
average  error  of  less  than  i  in  15,000  of  length,  and  of  even  less  in  angle.  In  the  twelfth  dynasty  the  granite  sarcophagus 
of  Senurset  1 1,  was  wrought  with  an  average  error  in  straightness  and  parallelism  of  under  seven-thousandths  of  an  inch. 


253 


History  of  the  world 


The  Great 

Navy 
of  Egypt 

Metals. 


more  of  emotion  than  of  character.  After 
that  there  is  nothing  but  copjdng,  good 
or  bad.  The  growth  of  shipping  at  the 
early  date  of  Snefeni,  the  end  of  the 
third  dvTiasty,  is  surprising  ;  and  the 
record  that  we  happen  to  have  shows 
how   much    probably   went   on   at   other 

times,  there     being    built,    in 

one  year  sixty  ships  of  lOO  ft. 

long,    in    the    next   year    two 

of  170  ft.  long. 
The  use  of  copper  is  as  remote 
as  the  beginning  of  the  continuous  civilisa- 
•  tion  in  the  prehistoric  age,  about  8000  B.C. 
It  increased  in  quantity  down  to  the 
eighteenth  dynasty,  and  it  was  hardened 
by  using  arsenical  copper  ores,  and 
leaving  oxide  in  it  ;  this,  with  hammering 
made  it  equal  to  soft  steel  for  working 
purposes.  Rare  instances  of  tin,  probably 
derived  from  natural  mixture  in  the  ore, 
are  knov\Ti  from  the  third  dynasty ; 
but  there  was  no  regular  use  of  it  until 
we  find  pure  tin,  also  known  about 
1500  B.C.  Thence  bronze  was  the  main 
material  until  Roman  times.  Iron  had 
been  sporadically  found  in  the  fourth, 
sixth,  twelfth,  and  other  dynasties,  and 
was  known  for  about  4,000  years  before 
it  came  into  general  use  in  Greek  times. 
This  agrees  with  its  having  been  obtained 
from  native  masses 
rarely  discovered,  as  has 
been  the  case  in  North 
and  South  America. 
Such  native  iron  is  the 
result  of  volcanic  action 
on  iron  ore  in  con- 
tact with  carboniferous 
strata.  All  these  con- 
ditions exist  in  Sinai, 
and  hence  native  iron 
might  be  found  there. 
By  about  800  B.C.  iron 
was  used  for  knives,  but 
with  a  handle  of  bronze 
cast  upon  it  to  save  the 
rarer  metal.  The  iron 
tools  in  Egypt  from  the 
seventh  to  fifth  century 
B.C.  are  all  Assyrian  or 
Greek,  and  it  is  not  till 
Ptolemaic  or  Roman 
times  that  bronze  tools 
disappear. 

The    forms    of    tools 
varied  very  little.  The  plain  strip  of  copper, 
which  was  used  for  an  adze  in  the  early 


PRE. 


Oldest 

Rock 

Drills 


PRE 


XII 


widened  at  the  edge,  and  had  a  slight  con- 
traction at  the  top  to  assist  in  binding  it 
on  ;  but  the  straight  strip  was  kept  up 
for  7,000  years  without  any  attempt  at  a 
haft,  simply  lashed  on  to  a  bent  handle. 
It  is  not  till  about  800  B.C.,  or  later,  that 
any  use  of  a  haft  occurs  in  Egypt,  and 
then  only  for  a  hoe  ;  while  in  Babylonia 
axes  cast  with  a  strong  haft  were  used 
before  3000  B.C.  Nor  was  a  haft  used  for 
a  hammer — a  smooth  stone  in  the  hand 
was  the  only  beating  tool ;  while  for 
striking  tools  a  wooden  mallet  was  used, 
cut  out  of  a  block.  The  axe  began  as  a 
plain  rectangle  of  copper,  sharp  on  one 
edge  ;  projections  at  the  back  were  added, 
until  they  were  half  as  long  as  the  breadth 
of  the  axe,  but  no  haft  was  attempted. 
The  saw  was  used  before  the  pyramid 
period ;  and  also  the  saw  and  tube 
drill  set  with  hard  stones  for 
cutting  granite.  Drills  for  bor- 
ing vases  were  usually  blocks 
of  stone  fed  with  sand  and 
water,  or  probably  emery  for  cutting  the 
harder  stones.  Socketted  chisels  were 
an  Italian  invention  in  the  later  Bronze 
Age,  about  900  B.C.,  and  were  copied  by 
the  Greeks,  in  iron,  about  500  B.C.  ;  but 
they  were  never  used  except  under 
Greek  influence  in  Egypt.  Shears  are 
also  Western,  and  were 
unknown  till  Greek 
times  in  Egypt. 

Glazing  and  Glass. 
The  very  ancient  art  of 
glazing,  already  used  in 
two  colours  under  Mena, 
did  not  take  any  new 
form  till  the  eighteenth 
dynasty,  when  it  was 
greatly  varied  by  new 
colours  and  new  appli- 
cations. Large  objects, 
five  feet  high,  were 
covered  with  a  single 
fusing  of  glaze  ;  minute 
ornaments,  for  stitching 
on  garments,  blazed 
with  the  brightest  red, 
green,  blue,  01  yellow  ; 
while  whole  inscrip- 
tions were  executed  in 
coloured     glaze     hiero- 


x// 


Al^/// 


X  I//// 


prehistoric  age,  became  in  historic  times 
254 


TOOLS  OF  ANCIENT  EGYPTIANS 
The  plain  strip  of  copper  used  for  an  adze  in  the 
early  prehistoric  age  became  in  historic  times 
widened  at  the  edge,  and  had  a  slight  contraction 
at  the  top  ;  but  the  straight  strip  was  kept  up  for 
7,000  years  without  any  attempt  at  a  haft,  simply 
lashed  on  to  a  bent  handle.  It  is  not  till  ah)out 
800    B.C.    that     any    use    of    a     haft    occurs    in 

Egypt    and  then  only  for  a    hoe.     The  different    glyphs,     inlaid       in      the 
dynasties  are  mdicated  in  the  examples  here  given.    '^  y  F       '  ,,       „, 

wliite  stone  walls.  Glass, 
however,  was  not  made  separately  until 
about  the  time  of  Tahutmes  III.,  1500  B.C. 
There  is  no  earlier  example  of  true  glass, 


\oi 
\< 

ili 

\< 

CO 

\< 
ihi 

lois 

I     ••     D 

W  « 

to  s 

l-w  I 

Q  ^ 
I-)  a 
(^  »> 

OS 


j 


255 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


tGYPT 

Prehis.  1st  Dyii.     XllthDyn.     KVIII  D. 


KARIA 


SPAIN 


p\ 

A  A^ 

AA(^ 

a 

AAR 

V 

9 

ff 

? 

??? 

a 

e 

?9 

*^ 

*^ 

*^ 

e 

*^ 

p 

^ 

^ 

^  E^ 

e 

^E^ 

Htf 

g 

B   H 

HB+ 

a 

e 

HH 

OH 
1 

on 
1 

D  n 
1 

an 

w 

1 

t 

a 
ai 

u 

L 

1 

r</ 

^  1^ 

^ 

t 

^Uf</^U 

O 

0 

o 

0 

o 

O 

YKV 

VY 

vry  V 

VX 

yyv 

LL 

YHV 

m9 

^T 

vt> 

Y4> 

(d94> 

W 

m<I> 

q^ 

(j;9 

bK 

cpcocp 

D 

^ 

d  ^ 

b 

[7Dt3 

> 

)    C 

1  (D 

)  ) 

5 

C<C 

^ 

A 

A 

A 

d 

4^ 

F 

f^/\ 

^  1=  AA 

lAA 

V 

I 

XX 

I 

z 

Z 

yy 

Y 

YM/ 

Y 

YH// 

kK 

0 

e 

©  0 

tK 

V 

^r 

ir 

X 

X  ir 

dK 

K 

K 

k 

K 

^ 

^A 

A  AT 

V 

^A^ 

I 

r/^A 

m 

M 

vn 
vn 

^ 

hJ^ 

N  A/ 

l/lAy^ 

n 

r'  M 

r 

h 

1 

r 

(^ 

rcr 

Tt 

^r  ? 

f>rp 

r 

^r? 

v^ 

:5 

$ 

s 

^'pS 

M^ 

fXl 

M 

^ 

MM/y\ 

5 

t^ 

m  LU 

muu  Y 

my 

HH  m  A 

sK 

Luy 

^ 

T 

-r 

T 

T 

t 

tt 

XH- 

x-^ 

XH-X 

x-hSs 

K 

t£p 

VW\ 

\A 

V\  V* 

vu 

^ 

fr 

^ 

re 

CX] 

[X 

ri 

1X3 

X 

X 

X 

X 

kK 

X 

>+c 

^ 

kK 

^ 

^ 

i 

> 

kl 

<<u. 

J^ 

z 

THE    BEGINNING    OF    THE    ALPHABET 

The  signary  which  was  used  in  various  early  ages  is 
here  shown,  as  it  has  been  gathered  from  examples  of 
over  loo  signs  found  in  Egypt.  Closely  related  to 
these  are  the  early  alphabets  of  Karia  and  Spain,  the 
latter  alphabet  containing  over  30  signs.  It  is  from 
this  prehistoric  signary  that  the  present  Roman 
alphabet  has  been  gradually  selected  during  past  ages. 


256 


nor  any  representation  of  working  glass. 
All  the  truly  Egyptian  glass  was  wrought 
pasty,  and  never  blown. 

Blown  vases  belong  entirely  to  the 
Roman  age  and  later  times.  The  large 
blown  glass  lamps  of  Arab  age,  covered 
with  fusible  enamel  designs,  are  highly 
skilled  pieces  of  work.  The  uses  of 
glass  to  the  Egyptian  were  mainly  for 
beads,  for  coloured  inlays  in  wood  of 
shrines  or  coffins,  and  for  variegated 
glass  vases.  The  beads  were  made  by 
winding  a  thread  of  glass  on  a  wire  ; 
the  vases,  likewise,  were  made  by  modelling 
on  an  infusible  core,  held  on  a  mandrel, 
and  winding  coloured  glass  threads  on  the 
body.  The  inlays  were  often  of  one 
colour,  generally  deep  blue  imitating 
lazuli  ;  but  often  mosaics  were  used, 
made  of  a  bundle  of  glass  threads  fused 
together,  drawn  out,  and  then  cut  off  in 
slices.  Such  are  all  of  Greek  or  Roman 
age.  An  important  use  of  glass  in 
Roman  and  Arab  times  was  for  weights, 
and  for  stamps  impressed  on  glass  bottle 
measures,  inscribed  with  the  names  of  the 
ruler  and  the  maker. 

Lastly  we  may  note  the  variations  in 
the  nature  of  the  Egyptian  literature, 
as  reflecting  the  civilisation. 
^^tK  '^'^^  earliest  tales  are  those  of 

°.     ^  magical  powers,   belonging  to 

imcs  ^j^^    pyramid    age.      Next,   in 

the  Middle  Kingdom,  comes  the  contrast 
between  town  and  country,  and  the 
tales  of  adventure  in  foreign  lands.  In 
the  New  Kingdom  the  contrasts  of 
character  are  the  main  interest,  and,  in' 
the  late  tales,  the  pseudo-historical 
romance  of  the  great  tournament  of  the 
Delta,  or  the  antiquarian  interests  of  a 
priest.  These  subjects  of  romance 
varied  as  much  or  more  than  the  actual 
grammar  and  language. 

Alphabet.  One  subject  of  great 
European  interest  should  be  noted  here, 
as  Egypt  has  thrown  much  light  upon  it. 
The  origin  of  the  alphabets  of  the  Mediter- 
ranean has  been  disputed,  without  his- 
torical knowledge  of  the  examples  of  such 
signs  in  early  ages.  The  Egyptian  hieratic 
and  the  archaic  Babylonian  signs  may 
have,  perhaps,  added  a  few  to  the  Mediter- 
ranean signary,  but  neither  source  can  at 
all  account  for  it.  The  alphabet  is  by  no 
means  a  clean  cut  series  of  22  signs ; 
it  is  a  very  complex  tangle  of  parallel 
groups  of  signs  in  different  lands,  more  or 
less  alike.     Of  these  groups  two  of  the 


i7 


2=57 


PYRAMID  OF  MEIDUM  :  BUILT  BY  SENEFERU,  LAST  KING  OF  THE  THIRD  DYNASTY 
This  tomb  was  begun  as  a  square  block  of  masonry,  and  was  enlarged  by  successive  coats,  which  are  here  seen. 
Then  one  smooth  coating  of  sloping  blocks  was  put  over  all  from  bottom  to  top,  and  so  the  first  real  pyramid 
appeared  in  4700  B.C.    The  pyramid  coating  has  been  destroyed  and  only  the  base  remains  under  the  rubbish  mounds. 


largest  are  those  of  Karia  and  Spain, 
comprising  over  30  signs,  and  these  have 
many  points  of  peculiarity  in  common. 
This  is  .sufficient  to  show  that  the  fuller 
alphabet  is  the  original  form,  from  which 
the  shorter  lists  have  baen  selected. 
Now,  in  Egypt  there  are  found  scratched 
on  pottery  and  woodwork  over  100  signs, 
and  these  comprise  the  forms  of  the 
fuller  alphabet.  Moreover,  these  Egyptian 
examples  are  found  at  about  1200  B.C., 
or  only  a  few  centuries  before  the  Karian 
and  Spanish  alphabets,  again  in  3000  B.C., 
in  5500  B.C.,  and  before  7000  B.C.  Of  41 
alphabetic  signs,  19  occur  in  1200-1400  B.C., 
32  in  3000  B.C.,  27  in  5500  B.C.,  and  31  in 
7000  B.C.  As  we  have  not  a  very  large 
amount  of  material,  the  occurrence  of 
from  iq  to  32  out  of  41  signs   is  as  much 


as  we  could  expect,  as  all  the  41  occur 
in  one  period  or  another.  The  early  date 
of  these  puts  all  derivation  from  the 
subsequent  hieroglyphics  entirely  out  of 
the  question.  We  can  as  yet  only  say  that 
a  large  signary  of  40  or  more  linear  forms 
was  in  continuous  use  from  before  7000  B.C. 
downwards,  and  that  these  furnish  all 
the  forms  of  the  fuller  alphabets,  those 
of  the  short  Phoenician  and  Greek  list 
of  later  time. 

We  have  now  outlined  the  rise  of 
civilisation  in  Egypt,  apart  from  the 
history  of  the  country,  which  is  dealt 
with  separately  ;  and  we  turn  to  the  other 
great  valley  of  early  civilisation,  in  Meso- 
potamia, to  compare  the  resemblances  and 
the  differences  between  the  two  lands. 
W.  M.  Flinders  Petrie 


NOTABLE    DATES    OF 

ANCIENT    CIVILISATION 

EGYPT 

BABYLONIA 

B.C. 

B.C. 

8000 

Continuous     civilisation     of 

prehistoric  age  bi'gan      . .     s.d.  30 

Before                                                       , 

7000 

Asiatic  invasion s.u.  40 

6000        Susa  founded 

5800 

Invasion  of  dynastic  race 

5500 

Mfna  rules  all  Egypt   .  .      .  .     s.u.  80 

5000       Ea  founds  Eridu  and  civilises  the  land 

4700 

Khufu  builds  Great  Pyramid 

4700       Earliest  monuments  of  Kings 
4500        Urnina 

4000 

Invasion  from  north 

3800       Sargon  and  Naramsin,  Semitic  rule 

3400 

Middle  Kingdom,  twelfth  dynasty 

3300       Gudea 

2500 

Hyksos  invasion,  fifteenth  dynasty 

2250 

Second  Hyksos  movement 

2280       Elamites  conquer  Babylonia 
2i2()        Hammurabi 

1580 

New  Kingdom,  eighteenth  dynasty 

1572        Kassite  dynasty 

1380 

Tell  el  Aniarna  letters 

1380        Burnaburiash 

701 

Taharqa  (Tirhakah) 

690       Sennacherib 

570- 

26  Aahmes  (.Amasis) 

556-38  Nabonaid,  fall  of  Babylon 

258 


)SAi^v^A/^/v\/v^/vAyv\/v^/v^AA/^\/v^^^ 

THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION 

IN    MESOPOTAMIA 
BY    PROFESSOR     FLINDERS     FETRIE 


The  first  impression  that  strikes  the 
reader  in  passing  from  the  Egyptian  to 
the  Mesopotamian  civihsation  is  the 
lack  of  that  unity  and  conciseness  which 
makes  history  in  the  Nile  valley  so 
intelligible,  and  its  problems  so  well 
defined. 

In  place  of  the  well  ordered  history  of 

Manetho,    with   its   numbered   dynasties, 

and    totals    stated    throughout,    there    is 

practically  nothing  stated  befor3  Nabunasir 

in  747  B.C.      The   mythological   extracts 

from   Berosus,  and   the   list   of   Ktesias, 

which    cannot    be    identified    with     any 

known   facts,   give  no   help  in  arranging 

the  outlines  of  the  history.     In  place  of 

the  uniform  language  and  writing,  which 

develops    without    a    break    during    the 

whole  history  of  Egypt,  there  is  the  entire 

break    from    Sumerian    to    Semitic.     In 

place   of    the    continuous    importance    of 

Egyptian    capitals,    there    is    the    change 

from  the  principalities  to  Baby- 

Disunion       bn,  and  thence  to  Nineveh.    In 

°  Y  ^.  place  of  the  unified  kingdom 
Babylonia      ^^  ^^^  ^-^^  ^^^^^^^  through  the 

whole  written  history,  the  greater  part 
of  the  documentary  period  is  filled  with 
rival  principalities,  within  thirty  or  forty 
miles  of  each  other,  the  tops  of  whose 
temples  must  have  been  visible  over 
the  entire  territory  of  their  respective 
states. 

As  the  general  scale  of  Egypt  is  so 
familiar  to  the  modern  reader  and  traveller, 
it  will  be  well  to  compare  Mesopotamia 
with  that.  Babylon  was  twice  as  far  from 
the  sea  as  Cairo  ;  and  from  Babylon  to 
Nineveh  was  the  distance  from  Cairo  to 
Sohag.  Or  in  other  terms,  starting  from 
the  sea,  Babylon  was  a?  distant  as 
Oxyrhynchos,  Nineveh  in  place  of  Thebes, 
and  the  highlands  of  Carchemish,  Com- 
magene,  and  Lake  Van  were  the  equivaient 
of  Nubia.  The  old  land  of  Shumer  was 
just  the  size  of  the  Delta,  and  Akkad  as 
large  as  Middle  Egypt.  The  principalities 
of  Eridu,  Lagash,  Ur,  Erech,  and  others, 
were  as  far  apart  as  those  of  the  Delta — 


The  Nile 
and  the 
Euphrates 


Bubastis,  Benha,  Sais,  or  Sebennytos. 
Indeed,  it  seems  as  if  this  were  a  natural 
unit-size  of  early  dominions  in  a  fertile 
plain. 

Though  the  relative  age  of  the  beginning 
of  civilisation  on  the  Nile  and  the 
Euphrates  is  yet  an  uncertain  matter,  still 
it  is  clear  that  the  unification  of  Egypt 
long  preceded  that  of  Baby- 
lonia. The  earliest  date  of  the 
scattered  Sumerian  kings  is 
about  that  of  the  fourth 
dynasty  ;  the  earliest  Semitic  dynasty — 
Sargon  and  Naramsin — was  contemporary 
with  the  ninth  dynasty,  and  the  rise  of 
the  dynasties  of  Babylon  is  of  the  later 
Hyksos  age  of  the  sixteenth  dynasty. 

Euphrates  Valley.  The  conditions 
of  the  Euphrates  valley  are  very  different 
from  those  of  the  Nile.  On  the  Egyptian 
coast  the  river  runs  into  a  strong  current 
in  the  Mediterranean,  which  sweeps  away 
its  sediment  and  prevents  any  continuous 
growth  of  the  coast.  But  the  Meso- 
potamian rivers  reach  the  sea-level  at  the 
head  of  a  deep  bay,  the  Persian  Gulf,  and 
hence  there  has  been  a  continuous  for- 
mation of  new  land  at  the  estuary.  The 
Mesopotamian  valley  and  the  Persian  Gulf 
form  one  long  drainage  valley  gently  sloping 
down  to  a  distance  about  twenty  miles 
outside  Hormuz,  where  the  valley  bottom 
drops  suddenly  three  miles  into  the  floor 
of  the  Indian  Ocean.  The  slope  of  this 
valley  so  far  as  submerged,  is  about  i  ft. 
to  the  mile,  and  it  is  i)robably  even  less 
in  the  Babylonian  plain,  where  sea-shells 
are  found  as  far  up  as  Babylon. 
Sea-shore  j^^^  valley  has  been  filled,  and 
the    sea-shore     pushed   down- 


Moved 
47  Miles 


ward,  47  miles  in  2,200  years,  or 
115  ft.  yearly,  since  Spasinus  Charax — now 
Mohammerah — was  founded  on  the  shore 
in  the  time  of  Alexander.  The  account  of 
a  sea  expedition  to  Elam  by  Sennacherib 
is  usually  interpreted  as  showing  a  more 
rapid  growth ;  but  in  the  uncertainty  how 
far  he  went  down  a  channel  before  enter- 
ing the  Persian  Gulf,  it  is  not  decisive. 

259 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


How  far  back  the  extension  of  land  has 
been  going  on,  and  whether  it  was  con- 
tinuous to  above  Babylon,  has  not  yet 
been  proved.  The  appearance  of  the  map 
much  suggests  that  the  original  drainage 
bed  ended— i.e.,  the  valley  was  sub- 
merged— at  about  the  nearing  of  the  two 
rivers  by  Sippara,  and  that  all  below  this 
is  the  filling  up  of  the  estuary.  Should 
this  growth  have  extended  uniformly  back 
so  far,  it  would  give  limits  to  the  possible 
ages  of  cities — 5000  B.C.  for  Eridu,  8000  B.C. 
for  the  whole  plain  of  Shumer,  10,000  B.C. 
for  Nippur,  and  earlier  for  the  site  of 
Babylon.  This  would  bar  the  southern 
region  from  being  as  old  as  Memphis,  and 
Eridu  was  probably  open  sea  when 
Menes  laid  out  his  capital. 

Range  of  Civilisation.  In  looking 
for  the  earliest  movements  of  people 
that  we  can  trace,  it  seems  that  the 
Semites  must  have  extended  from  Northern 
Arabia  into  Upper  Mesopotamia  and 
Assyria.  In  short,  Semitica  stretched  up 
to  the  mountain  ranges  of  Armenia  and 
Media.      But   the   culture  was   barbaric, 


and  probably  they  were  nomads  who  had 
no  fixed  centres  of  life  or  stable  organisa- 
tion which  could  resist  any  united  move- 
ment. At  this  period  the  Persian  Gulf 
probably  extended  as  far  as  Babylon. 
On  their  eastern  flank  were  the  mountain 
tribes,  in  what  is  known  as  Parthia  and 
Media,  south  of  the  Caspian.  How  remote 
is  the  beginning  of  civilisation  in  this 
region  has  been  found  in  the  last  few  years. 
On  the  north-east  extremity  of  Parthia, 
in  the  far  end  of  Hyrcania,  stands  a  group 
of  mounds,  near  the  modern  Askabad, 
not  far  from  the  celebrated  Turkoman 
stronghold  of  Geok  Tepe.  Here  are  14  ft. 
of  town  ruins  with  iron,  15  ft.  with  copper 
and  lead,  about  70  ft.  of  ruins  with  wheel- 
made  pottery  and  domesticated  animals, 
and  45  ft.  of  remains  with  only  rude  hand- 
made pottery.  What  ages  these  represent 
we  cannot  judge  until  the  full  account 
by  Prof.  Pumpelly  is  issued.  But  in  any 
case  a  very  long  period  is  involved.  If 
the  accumulation  is  at  the  rate  found  in 
Palestine,  4^  ft.  per  century,  the  periods 
would   be    perhaps    1,500   years    for   the 


THE    PLAIN    OF    BABYLONIA:     ITS    EXTENT    AT    DIFFERENT    PERIODS    IN    HISTORY 

This  map  shows  how  the  Plain  of  Babylonia  has  been  extended  down  by  silting  since  10,000  B.C.  The  dotted 
lines,  marked  330  B.C.  and  1830  A.D.,  show  the  known  positions  of  the  coast,  as  it  shifted  by  silting  up.  These  give 
an  approximate  scale   of  dating  for  the  coast-line  of  earlier  ages,  which  is  marked  here  at  each  thousand  years. 

260 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    MESOPOTAMIA 


wheel  pottery,  and  i,ooo  years  for  the 
rough  pottery,  before  the  beginning  of  the 
age  of  copper. 

At  the  other  side  of  these  countries 
stands  the  great  mound  of  Susa,  with 
over  80  ft.  of  ruins.  The  inscriptions  show 
that  about  26  ft.  of  the  height  was  accu- 
mulated between  about  4500  and  500  B.C., 
or  in  about  4,000  years.  Yet  before  that 
there  is  a  depth  of  about  50  ft.  com- 
prising three  periods.  In  the  upper  of 
these  is  elementary  cuneiform  writing  on 
tablets.  Below  that  is  a  period  of  rather 
rough,  thick  pottery,  painted  with  chequer 
patterns  and  closely-crossed  lines,  of  the 
style  common  in  early  Syria  and  Cyprus. 
And  at  the  bottom  of  all  is  a  great  quantity 
of  very  line,  thin  wheel-made  pottery  of 
buff  tints,  with  decoration  of  thin  dia- 
gonal lines,  rows  of  ostriches,  and  various 
patterns  all  derived  from  basket-work. 

If  the  scale  of  accumulation  of  the 
historic  times  were  to  apply  here,  it 
would  reach  back  to  12,000  B.C.  ;  but 
if  the  far  quicker  scale  found  in  Palestine 
applied,  it  would  hardly  reach  6000  B.C. 
.  In  any  case  we  have  here 
k**4*"^'k^  evidence  of  a  civilisation  appa- 
of  Time  rently  much  earlier  than  that 
ime  ^j-  gg]~,yiQ^ja,,  and  none  of  this 
earliest  line  pottery  has  been  found  in 
the  great  plains.  The  highland  civilisation 
may  have  begun  as  early,  or  earlier,  than 
that  of  Egypt  ;  but  that  of  Babylonia 
started  probably  later  than  the  North 
African  culture  on  the  Nile.  Seeing,  then, 
that  there  was  a  very  early  civilisation 
at  Susa  on  the  west  of  Media,  and  that 
further  east  on  the  limits  of  Parthia  we 
meet  another  early  centre,  it  is  not 
surprising  that  the  inhabitants  of  these 
regions  united  to  spread  down  into  the 
fertile  plain  which  was  created  by  the 
growing  delta  of  Mesopotamia.  These 
people  belonged  neither  to  the  Semite 
of  Arabia  nor  to  the  Aryan  of  Persia  and 
India,  but  used  an  agglutinative  language 
of  entirely  different  structure  from  these 
others,  and  most  akin  to  Turkish  or 
Finnish.  Having  descended  from  their 
mountain  homes,  the  people  were  known 
as  Akkadu,  probably  meaning  "  high- 
landers,"  though  there  are  other  open 
derivations.  And  hence  the  northern 
part  of  the  Babylonian  plain,  next  to  the 
Semitic  Assyrians,  was  the  land  of  Akkad  ; 
while  the  southern  part,  next  to  the  sea, 
was  known  by  the  native  Babylonian 
name  of  Sumer,  or  Shumer. 


SuMERiANS.  The  civilisation  of  the 
Sumerians  was  more  akin  to  that  of  the 
Chinese  than  to  western  types,  especially 
in  its  art,  its  picture  writing  and  devo- 
tion to  literature,  its  capacity  for  town 
life,  and  its  religious  ideas.  The  cognate 
origins  of  the  people  may  well  account 
for  this,  and  some  more  precise  re- 
,  semblances     led     Terrien     de 

,.\'^**.^.     Lacouperie    to    the  view   that 
Links  with     ^,  ■        ^  •     v      X- 

„  .    .  Chmese     civilisation    was     an 

a  y  on        offshoot    from    the    Sumerian 
stock  in  its  old  Parthian  home. 

The  elements  of  life  were  well  developed 
by  the  Sumerians.  They  were  great 
agriculturists,  and  wrote  works  on  the 
main  industry  of  man,  much  as  the 
Carthaginians  wrote  standard  works  prized 
later  by  the  Romans.  They  fermented  the 
grape  and  corn,  and  had  alcoholic  drinks. 
Cattle  of  all  kinds  were  raised,  and  prized 
as  stock,  which  was  fed  on  grass  or  grain 
or  oilcake.  The  horse  is  mentioned  first 
in  Semitic  times,  about  2000  B.C.  Dates 
and  figs  were  the  principal  fruits  grown  ; 
and,  indeed,  the  date  palm  seems  to  have 
had  a  far  more  important  place  in  the 
civilisation  than  it  did  in  that  of  Egypt. 
Both  wool  and  leather  were  used  for 
clothing,  as  might  be  expected. 

Building.  The  main  structural  in- 
dustry of  the  country  was  that  of  brick- 
making  and  building.  Immense  piles  of 
brickwork  were  made  to  support  the 
temples,  marking  clearly  the  custom 
of  the  highlander  Akkadi  worshipping  on 
the  hilltops.  The  brick  ziggurat,  or  iive- 
stepped  pyramid,  at  Nippur  was  190  ft. 
by  128  ft.,  and  about  a  hundred  feet  high. 
The  earliest  baked  bricks  are  8'7  in.  by 
5"6  in.  by  2"2  in.,  and  they  were  enlarged 
to  12  in.  by  7*8  in.  by  I'g  in.  within  the 
Sumerian  age.  Toward  the  close  of  that 
time  large  square  bricks  were  used. 
Sargon  made  baked  bricks  18  in.  square  and 
3^  in.  thick.  From  the  time  of  tJr-Engur 
(3200  B.C.)  onward  the  baked  bricks  were 
II  in.  or  12  in.  square. 
f    'h"  Grc      Beside  the  baked  brick  used 

^^  f  ""^^  for  pavements,  drains, 
mgs  facings,  and  important  work, 
the  great  bulk  was  made  up  of  crude 
brick  as  in  Egypt.  For  important  pur- 
poses, such  as  store-rooms,  the  inside  of 
chambers  was  lined  with  a  coat  of  bitumen, 
rendering  them  damp-proof ;  and  such  a 
lining  was  used  on  tanks.  Pottery  is 
abundant  in  all  ages,  but  we  still  need 
a  study  of  the  pottery  such  as  has  been 

261 


-S^^^J-^i 


THE    ANCIENT    BABYLONIANS    AND    THEIR    WEAPONS    OF    WAR 
There  is  a  fine  study   of  weapons  on  a  carving  of  Eannatiim  (4400   B.C.),   where   spears   about   7   ft.    long, 
with   blade   heads,    are   figured.      Shields    are    shown   reaching    from    the    neck    to   the    ankles,   straight- 
sided,   used  edge    to     edge    as   a     shield     wall   by   a   phalanx     of    soldiers.     The     heads   of   the   men   are 
covered    by  well-formed   peaked    helmets    reaching    down    to  the    nape  of  the  neck,  with    nose    pieces. 


made  in  Egypt,  so  that  it  can  be  used 
to  date  excavations  in  general.  Stands 
for  jars,  framed  of  vvood,  were  used  as  in 
Egypt  ;  and  also  the  cic^y  sealings  were  of 
the  same  type  in  bith  lands.  Stone  vases 
were  made  to  imi     te  pottery  ;  and  this 


suggests  that  the 
using  basket-work 
into   the    plain,    a; 
possess  any  types  r 
Tools  and  We 
tools  were  used,  sue 
and    great    skill    wi. 
engraving  upon  harr 
weapons  there  is  a  ii. 
of    Eannatum    (4400 
of  about 
shown  : 


neck   to 
263 


hlanders  were  only 
hen  they  descended 
therefore    did   not 
one  work. 

The  common 

s  Knives  and  drills  ; 

develo]:)ed    in    seal 

stone  cylinders.    Of 

study  on  a  carving 

B.C.),   where  spears 

7  ft.  long,  with  blade  heads,  are 

also   shields   reaching   from   the 


the   ankles,   straight-sided,    and 


used  edge  to  edge  as  a  shield  wall  by  a 
phalanx  of  soldiers  ;  while  the  heads  are 
covered  by  well -formed  peaked  helmets, 
with  nose  pieces,  and  reaching  down  to  the 
nape  of  the  neck.  Bows  and  arrows  and 
daggers  were  also  used  ;  and  stone  mace- 
heads,  of  the  pear  shape  used  in  Egypt, 
were  important  ceremonially,  and  often 
bear  inscriptions.  Woodwork  was  elab- 
orated with  carving,  and  used  for  bed- 
steads and  stools,  as  seen  in  the  seats  of 
the  gods  figured  on  seals  and  tablets. 

Clothing.  Clothing  varied  a  good  deal. 
A  primitive  custom  of  nudity  when  offering 
to  the  gods  was  continued  down  to  the 
close  of  the  Sumerian  age,  as  shown  on  the 
tablet  of  Ur-en-lil.  The  kilt  was  worn 
with  a  fringe,  not  reaching  the  knee  ;  or  it 
was  worn  from  the  waist  to  the  ankles,  as 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    MESOPOTAMIA 


by  shepherds.  A  robe  over  the  left  shoulder 
reaching  to  the  knee  was  used  with  a 
deep  fringe  all  down  the  front  edge  and 
round  the  bottom.  A  long  robe  reaching 
to  the  ankles  is  shown  on  the  figures  of 
Gudea.  But  the  most  characteristic  dress 
was  that  of  ribbed  woollen  stuff,  much  like 
that  of  the  fifth  century  B.C.  in  Greece,  as 
on  the  Running  Maiden.  This  stuff  was 
worn  as  a  flounced  petticoat  (Urnina  4500 
B.C.),  or  in  a  longer  form  over  the  left 
shoulder  and  down  to  the  ankles,  as  by 
Eannatum  and  Naram-Sin.  A  splendid 
flounced  cape  and  long  robe  of  this  stuff  is 
shown  as  worn  by  Ishtar  on  the  Anubanini 
rock  stele,  about  3600  B.C. 

Science  and  Art.  The  system  of  num- 
ber, weight,  and  measure  was  peculiarly 
Babylonian.  Some  people  have  theorised 
about  all  later  standards  having  been  de- 
rived in  various  intricate  ways  from  those 
of  Babylon.  But  it  is  very  unhkely  that 
standards  should  not  arise  in  different 
centres,  and  still  more  unlikely  that  the 
complex  derivations  should  be  formed 
when  the  whole  object  would  be  to 
maintain  a  system  in  common. 

But  there  is  no  question  of  the  great 

advance  of  the  Sumerian  in  these  matters. 

_  .  The  sexagesimal  system,  which 

Science  ■        s  •      i.      i 

IS     far    more    convenient     lor 

tf        .  many  purposes  than  the  deci- 

mal,  and  which  we  still  retain 

for  time  and  for  angle,  was  due  to  the 

Sumerian    intellect,    while    the   standards 

of  weight,  the  talent,  maneh,  and  shekel, 

were  also  from  the  same  source.    And  we 

cannot  doubt  that  the  cubit  was  already 

in   use   by  a  people  living  in   cities   and 

carrying  on  business. 

The  style  of  art  was  clumsy,  owing  to 
the  habit  of  crowding  together  as  much  as 
possible  into  the  space,  in  order  to  form  the 
record.  The  human  forms  are  thick  and 
short,  and  detail  is  firmly  and  perse veringly 
repeated.  It  entirely  lacks,  in  its  early 
stages,  the  spontaneous  truth  of  the  early 
dynastic  work  in  Egypt.  At  the  close  of 
the  Sumerian  age,  under  Naramsin,  there 
is  a  fine  bold  design  in  groups  of  figures, 
well  proportioned,  and  with  good  action, 
recalling  curiously  the  spirit  of  late  Greek 
work  from  Praxiteles  to  the  Pergamene 
warriors.  The  stages  of  change  cannot  yet 
be  distinguished,  owing  to  the  scarcity  of 
the  dated  examples  that  we  have. 

Literature  and  Writings.  It  is  in 
lit':rature  that  we  know  the  Sumerian 
best.        Unhappily,     other     branches     of 


archaeology  have  been  neglected,  and  even 
destroyed,  in  the  eager  search  for  tablets, 
and  yet  more  tablets.  By  the  thousand 
they  are  found,  and  hurriedly  removed, 
while  the  architecture,  crafts,  and  art- 
history  are  thrown  aside  in  the  process. 
The  hunter  for  tablets  in  Babylonia,  and 
for  papyrus  in  Egypt,  is  a  heartless  wrecker, 
without  any  interests  beyond 
°^*  his  own  line.     When  so  much 

°  .  has    been  sacrificed  for    the 

^^  written  record,  we  must  glean 

all  we  can  from  it  for  the  history  of 
the  civilisation,  as  most  of  the  other 
material  that  might  have  been  preserved 
has  been  sacrificed.  The  Sumerian  kin- 
guage  was  the  sole  language  of  civilisa- 
tion, until,  at  about  4000  B.C.,  the  Semite 
began  to  conquer  and  to  take  part 
in  the.  advance  of  the  world.  Yet  the 
older  tongue  was  by  no  means  extin- 
guished ;  it  held  its  place  as  the  official 
religious  and  literary  language,  like  Latin 
in  Europe.  The  literature  of  the  world  was 
in  Sumerian,  and  only  gradually  did  the 
new  Semite  intruders  translate  the  older 
works  or  rise  to  writing  a  literature  of  their 
own. 

The  Sumerian  literature  was  for  long 
accompanied  by  a  Semitic  translation,  like 
Latin  and  Saxon  gospels  ;  and  syllabaries, 
v^ocabularies,  and  grammatical  lists  were 
written  to  teach  the  Semite  the  old  religious 
language.  Legal  documents  were  drawn  up 
in  Sumerian,  and  it  only  gradually  lost  its 
precedence  from  4000  B.C.  down  to  1600 
B.C.,  when  it  was  almost  extinct,  being 
only  revived  as  a  literary  curiosity  in  the 
.seventh  century  B.C. 

The  writing  was  a  pictorial  system  like 
the  Egyptian  hieroglyphics.  And  so  long  as 
the  Sumerian  used  it  he  clung  to  the 
pictorial  origin  even  though  obscured  by 
the  lineal  style  of  drawing.  On  papyrus  or 
parchment  it  is  easy  to  make  curved  forms, 
and  such  were  adopted  in  drawing  the  signs 
originally.  But  on  clay,  which  was  the  all- 
available  material  in  the 
Babylonian  plain,  impressing 
lines  is  far  neater  than 
scratching  them  up  ;  and  the 
handv  tool  for  making  impressions  was  a  I 
slip  of  wood  with  a  square  end.  Hence  all 
the  curves  tended  to  become  four  or  five- 
sided  outlines,  and  all  the  detail  became 
built  up  of  little  lines  tapering  off  to  one 
end,  or  "digs"  with  the  corner  of  the  stylus. 
Yet  down  to  the  close  of  the  Sumerian  age 
the    forms    of    the  objects  can    still    be 

263 


How  the 
Semite  Made 
His  Notes 


Manseil 

THE    FINEST    EARLY    BABYLONIAN     ART:   TRIUMPH    OF    KING  NARAMSIN,    3750  B.C. 
This  work,  found  in  Siisa,  is  curiously  free  and  pictorial ;  it  is  unriva  led  by  any  early  carvings,  and  most  resemb  es 
the  action  and  spiiit  of  late  Greek  sculpture.     It  marks  the  great  period  of  the  fusion  of  the  Sumeriau  and  Semite. 


264 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    MESOPOTAMIA 


discerned,  and  they  are  still  pictures  rather 
than  mere  immaterial  symbols. 

The  Semite,  however,  changed  all  this. 
He  learned  merely  the  sound  values  of 
certain  forms,  their  meaning  could  not 
appeal  to  him,  and  he  built  up  his  words 
out  of  these  sounds  or  syllables.  He  found 
it  inconvenient  to  write  in  vertical 
columns,  which  was  the  constant  Sumerian 
habit,  and  turned  his  tablet  sideways  to  his 
hand,  so  as  to  make  his  signs  along  a 
horizontal  line  of  writing.  Hence  these 
signs  became  familiar  to  him  on  their 
sides,  and  as  they  had  to  him  no  pictorial 
values,  the  position  was  indifferent.  Lastly, 
he  produced  a  syllabary  of  signs  written 
with  combinations  of  four  forms  of  impress, 
a  long  line  wider  at  one  end,  a  short  line, 
a  tall  triangle,  and  a  small  equilateral 
triangle,  written  in  horizontal  lines  ;  and 
each  sign  was  standing  on  what  had  ori- 
ginally been  its  side.  The  wedge-shaped 
form  of  these  lines  has  given  rise  to  the 
name  of  wedge-writing,  or  cuneiform 
writing  for  this  system. 

The  knowledge  of  this  writing  survived 

Greek  influence   for  some   four  centuries 

after  iVlexander,  only  becoming  extinct  at 

the  close  of   the  first  century 

e  Story    ^^  ^^^  ^^^      j^  -^^  ^^^^  history, 

°  *  double  that  of  the  Roman  al- 

anguage  pj-i^j^g^  at  present,  it  had  been 
used  for  very  diverse  languages.  The 
Sumerian  inventor  had  handed  it  on  to 
the  Semitic  intruder,  and  he  had  passed 
it  to  the  Syrian,  the  Mitannian,  the 
Hittite,  and  the  Vannic  peoples.  Prob- 
ably it  had  kept  its  hold  in  its  first  home 
in  Elam,  where  it  is  found  in  historic 
times,  and  thence  it  became  the  writing 
of  Persia,  and  even  of  the  Parthian,  before 
it  became  extinct.  The  variety  of 
languages  and  the  extent  of  country 
which  it  covered  is  much  like  the  scope 
of  the  Roman  alphabet  in  Europe  to-day. 
Law  and  Religion.  In  matters  of 
law  the  Sumerian  was  well  advanced. 
The  needs  of  city  life  which  he  had 
developed  necessarily  required  a  full 
definition  of  rights  and  duties.  The  first 
law  book  was  that  of  Ea,  the  god  of 
civilisation,  the  Oannes  of  the  later 
legends  of  Berosus.  The  decisions  of 
judges  were  kept  in  abstract,  and  such 
case-made  law  served  as  a  body  of 
precedent  to  guide  decisions.  The  posi- 
tion of  women  was  on  a  level  with  that  of 
men  ;  in  the  Sumerian  hymns  the  woman 
takes  precedence,  and  one  of  the  great 


<['>  w  ^>  i  M  u 


1  11 


V       A       3         E        3 
A. 


IJli  III!  k    AA? 

I  '  BOW    AND  Wf 


HARP  ftRROW 


FISH  BIRD  AX£  VASe 


— '  ^f  r^ 


FI5H 


MA  N 


MONTH 


fie  to 


THE  DECAY  OF  PICTURE-WRITING 
This  illustrates  the  decay  of  pictures  into  signs,  and 
shows  very  clearly  how  the  cuneiform  writing  was  deve- 
loped from  the  earlier  hieroglyphics.  It  will  be  noticed 
that  the  word  originally  rendered  by  a  crude  drawing 
of  the  object— "fish,"  for  example— retains  even  in  its 
final  cuneiform  style  some  resemblance  to  the  tail  of  a  fish. 
The  cuneiform  lettering  was  necessarytotheB  aby  lonians, 
as  clay  was  the  meet  abundant  material  in  their  land 
and  could  best  be  marked  upon  in  lines  without  curves. 

Sumerian  divinities  was  Ishhtar,  who 
became  Ashtaroth  of  Syria,  Athtar  of 
Arabia,  and  hence  Hathor  of  Egypt.  In 
the  Semitic  system  the  goddess  is  but  a 
feeble  companion  of  a  god  ;  but  Ishtar  was 
the  great  divinity  of  war,  to  whom  the  kings 
owed  their  triumphs,  as  well  as  the  queen 
of  love,  who  ruled  the  course  of  nature. 

The  religion  of  the  Sumerians  was  like 
that  of  other  Turanian  races.  These 
peoples  have  an  aversion  to  the  idea  of 
a  personal  god,  to  which  the  Semitic 
peoples  cling.  The  Samoyede  believes  in 
a  multitude  of  local  spirits,  the  Chinese 

265 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


have  their  impersonal  Heaven  and  the 
host  of  gnomes  or  earth  spirits.  Thus 
also  the  Sumerian  thought  of  all  objects 
as  having  a  zi  or  spirit,  good  or  evil, 
which  needed  to  be  appeased  by  the 
weak  or  commanded  by  the  sorcery  of 
the  strong.  Shamanism  was  the  type  of 
religion  ;    and    books    of   exorcisms     and 


THE     SUMERIAN    TYPE    OF    BABYLONIAN 
The    fact    that    the    shaven     type    of    face    appears 
in    all     the     monuments     back    to     4500     B.C.     indi- 
cates    that    the     Sumerians     were     shaven     as    they 
were  the  older  of  the   two   main  races  in   Babylonia. 

magic  spells  were  in  permanent  use.  The 
importance  of  the  principalities  naturally 
led  to  their  local  spirits  being  of  general 
importance  ;  and  hence  the  political 
changes  brought  Sin  the  moon  god  of 
Ur,  or  Utuki  the  sun  god  of  Sippar  and 
Larsa,  or  Marduk  of  Babylon,  into  a 
leading  position,  and  led  toward  the 
Semitic  type  of  deities.  How  far  this 
change  was  due  to  the  beginning  of 
Semitic  influence  we  cannot  now  say. 
Other  native  gods  were  less  personal, 
such  as  Ana  the  sky,  Enlila  the  earth, 
and  Ea  the  .sea. 

Types  of  Races.  The  physical  type 
of  the  people  is  .shown  to  us  by  the  early 
monuments,  though  we  hardly  yet  know 
enough  of  the  early  history  to  understand 
them  fully.  Two  main  types  stand  out 
entirely  apart,  the  shaven  and  the  full- 
haired.  And  when  it  is  seen  that  the 
.shaven  type  is  that  of  all  the  earliest 
human  figures,  dating  from  4500  B.C.  and 
extending  down  to  even  2100  B.C.,  while 
the  full-haired  type  is  not  found  on  men 
before  3750  B.C.,  it  is  clear  that  the 
shaven  is  the  Sumerian  and  the  bearded 
is  the   Semitic    type.      The    remarkable 

266 


point  is  that  the  gods  are  represented 
with  long  hair  tressed  up  and  long  beards 
from  4400  B.C.  ;  and  as  early  as  we  can 
go  back  there  is  never  a  figure  of  a  beard- 
less god.  The  reason  probably  is  that 
personal  gods  were  of  Semitic  origin, 
their  worship  was  borrowed,  and  hence 
their  forms.  If  so,  we  must  see  a 
large  Semitic  influence  already  acting  on 
the  earliest  known  Sumerian  art.  The 
variations  of  type  may  perhaps  lead  to 
some  further  distinctions.  The  full, 
curly,  square- ended  beard  and  long  hair 
are  usual  for  the  gods,  as  seen  under 
Eannatum  (4400),  Urenlil  (4000),  Gudea 
(3300),  and  Hammurabi  (2100).  The 
same  beard,  but  with  the  hair  done  up 
into  a  disc  (as  on  the  Tello  heads  and 
Hammurabi),  is  worn  by  the  King 
Anubanini  (3600).  The  long  and  rather 
pointed  beard  is  seen  on  Naramsin  (3750), 
and  Hammiurabi  (2100).  The  short, 
square  beard  is  seen  on  the  god,  under 
Eannatum    (4400),    and    on    men    about 


THE    SEMITIC    TYPE    OF    BABYLONIAN 

Men  with  full  beards  are  not  represented  on  Babylonian 
monuments  until  3750  B.C.  ;  hence  it  is  clear  that 
such  figures  represented  people  of  the  Semitic  type. 
This  portrait  is   from  a  sculpture  of  King  Hammurabi. 

Naramsin's  age  [see  the  seal  of  Ubilishtar]. 
The  shaven  type  has  a  wide  face,  with  a 
large  prominent  aquiline  nose,  best  seen 
in   the   head   from  Tello.    This   type   is 


THE    FAMILIAR    BEARDED    TYPE    OF    ASSYRIAN     GODS    AND    MEN 
Although  the  full-haired  faces  are  later  in  appearing  on  the  monuments  of  Babylonia,  all  ^^^^es  of  gods  are  shown  as  pos- 
sessed of  full  beards  and  a  wealth  of  hair.     A  familiar  example  is  here  reproduced.     1 .  is  supposed  that  the  Semitic  race 
fn  Assyria  was  the  first  to  personalise  the  deities,  and  hence  the  resemblance  of  the  images  to  the  features  of  the  Semites. 


that  of  all  the  human  figures  on  the  scenes 
of  Urnina  (4500),  Eannatum  (4400),  and 
Urenlil  (4000)  ;  and  in  the  figures  of  the 
Scribe  Kalhi  (cylinder,  375o),Gudea  (stele, 
3300),  the  heads  of  the  same  age  from 
Tello,  and  the  later  head  of  beautiful 
work  at  Berlin.  The  general  conclusions 
may  be  that  the  beard  was  worn  and 
admired  by  Semites,  who  elaborated  a 
very  full  type  for  the  gods  ;  and  that 
the  Semitic  influx,  though  ruling  under 
Naramsin  at  Sippara,  north  of  Babylon, 


was  yet  subordinate  at  the  later  date  of 
Gudea,  in  tie  Sumerian  south. 

Semitic  /  ;e.  We  now  turn  to  the 
later  stage  )i  the  civilisation,  as  it 
flourished  under  the  mixed  race  of 
Sumerians  as.d  Semites,  partaking  of 
the  culture  o^  the  older  race  and  the  higher 
moral  tone  •'  the  less  advanced  people. 
The  Sumerij  .  as  we  have  noted,  had 
pushed  down  from  the  Median  high- 
lands into  the  growing  plain  of  Babylonia, 
while  the  earlier  Semites  remained  to  the 

267 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


north  in  Assyria,  and  to  the  west  in 
Naharaina  and  Syria.  Sooner  or  later 
a  fusion  was  inevitable  ;  as  we  have  seen 
already,  the  gods  were  of  a  Semitic  type 
at  a  very  early  time,  and  gradually  the 
union  took  place  during  three  thousand 


pond,  and  every  ancient  temple,  with  its 
fortifying  wall,  was  built  out  of  a  large 
pit  at  its  side  which  became  the  sacred 
lake  of  the  temple. 

A  higher  branch  of  building  was  the  use 
of  glazed  bricks.  In  Egypt  the  use  of  glazed 


out  in  the  earliest  dynasties,  before 
5000  B.C.  ;  but  there  was  no  glazing  of  the 
bricks,  because  in  so  dry  a  climate  the 
Egyptian  was  never  induced  to  burn  his 
bricks.  In  the  wet  and  damp  of  Babylonia, 
on  the  contrary,  burnt  bricks  were  usual, 
and  all  the  facings  and  main  divisions 
of  structure  were  in  the  indissoluble 
material,  which  held  together  and  pro- 
tected the  mass  of  crude  brickwork  within 
it.  It  was,  however,  mainly,  or  only, 
in  the  later  times — from  the  ninth  century 
onwards — that  bricks  glazed  on  the  outer 
face  were  used  for  building.  It  seems  that 
this  was  done  not  so  much  for  utility — like 
our  modern  use  of  glazed  bricks — as 
for  the  artistic  effect  of  colours  and 
designs.  The  grandest  example  of  such 
work    that    is    known    is    the     facade   of 


years,  until  in  the  later  times  the  product      tiles  for  coating  walls  was  boldly  carried 
was    unified    in    one    strong    civiUsation 
which  spread   its  strength  far  and  wide 
to    the    Crimea,    to    Egypt,    and    to    the 
deserts  of  Central  Asia. 

Building.     The  old  skill  and  abihties 
found  a  wide  scope  in  this  larger  frame 
of  life.     The  fundamental  craft  of  brick- 
work was   carried  on  to  a  vast   extent. 
Every  city  had  its  great  pile  of  an  artificial 
hill  of  bricks,  built  in  stages  to  support  the 
temple  of  its  god  high  above  all.   Immense 
walls    surrounded    the    cities  ;     those    of 
Babylon  were  some  nine  miles  around,  and 
are  stated  to  have  been  85  ft.  high  and 
340  ft.  thick,  surrounded  by  a  moat  lined 
with  burnt  brick  laid  in  bitumen.     Not 
only  was  brickwork  used  on   this  great 
scale  in  the  Babylonian  plain  where  stone 
was  a  luxury,  but  the  force  of  example 
was    so    strong    that    the 
Assyrian,  in    his  highland 
home,  kept    up  the  same 
scale    of   brickbuilding    as 
his     teachers,     and     used 
brick  for   his  palaces  and 
temples  when  stone  would 
have     been     much     more 
easily  available. 

In  Babylonia,  as  in 
Egypt,  the  supply  of 
material  for  brickmaking 
on  a  large  scale  is  a 
serious  question.  For  the 
great  walls  of  cities,  ob- 
viously a  surrounding  ditch 
was  an  advantage ;  but 
for  the  materials  of  houses, 
temples,  and  ziggurats, 
great  pits  had  to  be  dug, 
or  older  buildings  pulled 
down.  At  Nippur  it  was 
found  that  the  later 
builders  had  torn  down  a 
long  piece  of  the  disused 
city  wall  and  dug  out 
a  great  pit  below  and 
around  it.  So  in  Egypt 
the  outskirts  of  every 
village  has  its  perilous 
hole  where   the  bricks  are 


A    TEMPLE    PLATFORM,    OR    ZIGGURAT,     OF    BABYLONIA 
This  restoration  of  the  Temple  of  Bel  at  Nippur,  from  the  designs  of  Hilprecht 
and     Fisher,     gives     a     good     idea    of    the    massive     character    of    Assyrian 
.  architecture.       The  portion  marked   (i)   consists    of    a    stage    tower    with    a 

made,  which,   in     course    of     shrine    at    top    and    a    long    stairway    leading    thereto;      (z)     is    the    temple 
j.;.„„     U.-,,-^ .     «       +„ 4-     proper;     (3)     house    for     "honey,     cream      and    wine";     (4)    "place     for    the 

time,  becomes  a  stagnant    Seiight  or  Bur-sir v*/  .  »- 


-sin";    (5)   is  the  inner  wall  and  (6)  the  massive  outer  walls. 


268 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    MESOPOTAMIA 


coloured  glazed  brick  in  relief,  repre- 
senting the  royal  archers,  from  Susa  of  the 
Persian  age,  now  in  Paris,  restored  from 
the  fragments. 

Beside  baked  brick,  pottery  was  used 
on  a  large  scale.  Great  jars  occur  in  the 
earliest  times,  and  cylindrical  drains  of 
large  size,  sufficiently  wide  for  a  man  to 
descend  in  them  for  repair.  In  later  times 
coffins  of  baked  pottery  of  the  Parthian 
age,  and  glazed  coffins  of  slipper  shape, 
dating  from  the  Sassanian  period,  are  very 
common  on  most  of  the  city  ruins.  Un- 
fortunately, sufficient  attention  has  not 
yet  been  given  to  the  pottery  of  any  age. 

Wood  was  largely  used  in  the  more 
wealthy  ages,  but  it  was  always  valuable. 


A    KING'S    EMBROIDERIES 
This  illustrates  the   richness    of   the    decoration   on 
the    breast    of   an   Assyrian    king,   whose    complete 
attire  is    seen    in    the    other   picture    on  this  page. 

as  large  timber  had  to  be  brought  from  a 
distance.  The  great  halls  of  the  palaces 
were  all  roofed  with  timber  beams,  and 
panels  of  cedar  lined  the  walls  where 
stone  was  not  used.  Probably  palm  trunks 
and  palm  leaves  served  for  ordinary 
roofing,  as  in  Egypt  at  present. 

Clothing.  Clothing  became  far  more 
elaborate  than  in  earlier  ages,  and  the 
dominance  of  the  more  northern  people 
brought  a  fuller  dress  into  customary  use. 
The  Assyrian  covered  the  whole  body  with 
a  tunic  down  to  the  knees,  and  the  upper 
classes  wore  a  robe  to  the  feet.  Rich  em- 
broideries were  usual  among  both  Baby- 
lonians and  Assyrians,  and  the  splendour 


DRESS  IN  ASSYRIA'S  GOLDEN  AGE 
Rich  embroideries  were  usual  among  Babylonians  and 
Assyrians,  and  the  splendour  of  Babylonian  garments 
was  spread  far  in  other  lands  by  trade.  The  royal 
head-dress  in  Assyria  was  practically  the  modern  tarbush, 
which  has  again  been  imposed  on  the  East  by  the  Turk. 

of  Babylo'  'aTi  garments  was  spread  far 
in  other  1  i  -  oy  trade.  The  cap  was 
either  cyli  1  or  conical,  and  the  royal 

head-dress  .  .ssyria  was  practically  the 
modern    ta. '  which   has   again   been 

imposed  on  ist  by  the  Turk.    Sandals 

were   used  syria,   and   the   boot  so 

characterisvi*  the    Hittite    was    also 

brought  in  '  'i  the  cold  mountainous 
country.  W*-  i  wore  a  long,  thin  robe  to 
the  feet,  cc  i  sometimes  by  a  tunic  and 

a  cape.  Bu  itar  is  always  shown  in  a 
ribbed  dres  ^unced  from  top  to  bottom. 
This  is  tht  ,;ilar  women's  dress  of  the 
western  Se  ;  and  its  use,  like  that  of 

the  beard  Sie  male  deities,  points  to 
the  strong  antic  influence  on  the  ap- 
pearance ai       b-  r  icter  of  the  divinities. 

The  arm  ihe  Assyrian  was  much 

the  same  ;  in  the  early  Sumerian 

days.    The  d  helmet  became  rather 

taller,  and  t  cover  the  back  of  the 

head.'  The  t  ,  and  the  bow  and, arrow, 
were  the  main  weapons  as  before.  The 
old  straight-sided  shield  was  also  used 
in  Assyrian  times,  but  was  partly  super- 
seded by  the  round  shield  considerably 
coned.      The   extension   of    the   kingdom 

269 


History  of  the  world 


Sculpture 
5,000 

Years  Ago 


brought  in  various  auxiliaries,  who  differed 
from  the  older  Babylonians.  Slingers, 
northern  horsemen  clad  in  leather,  and 
mountaineers  with  woodman's  axes,  all 
added  new  branches  to  the  army. 

Art.  The  arts  were  carried  to  great 
perfection  by  the  mixed  population. 
Broadly  speaking,  the  best  work  is  that  of 
the  early  age  of  Naramsin 
(3750  B.C.),  and  that  of  the 
late  age  of  Ashur-bani-pal 
(640  B.C.).  Though  not  so  fine, 
yet  probably  the  Hammurabi  sculptures 
are  the  highest  between  the  early  and  late 
schools.  This  would  give  intervals  of  1,650 
and  1,460  years  between  the  successive 
waves  of  art,  and  about  1,450  years  more 
to  the  glories  of  Baghdad,  a  period  much 
like  that  found  on  the  Mediterranean, 
though  not  coincident  with  it. 

The  finest  work  of  Naramsin  (3750  B.C.) 
is  his  great  stele  from  Susa,  now  in  Paris. 
It  is  remarkably  pictorial  in  style,  agreeing 
in  this  with  the  pieces  of  a  limestone  stele 
representing  rows  of  combatants  from 
Tello,  also  in  Paris.  The  figure  of  the 
king  is  lithe,  active,  romantic  in  attitude, 
the  enemies  and  his  soldiers  are  full  of 
animation.  No  Oriental  sculpture  has  had 
quite  the  same  life  in  it  ;  and  it  recalls 
the  pictorial  style  of  Crete  and  the  later 
Greek  sculpture.  The  art  of  Gudea  (3300 
B.C.)  is  more  cold  and  formal,  and  has  not 
the  same  fine  sense  of  proportion  ;  it  is 
distinctly  a  period  of  survival  and  not  of 
artistic  instinct,  as  seen,  for  instance,  on 
the  limestone  relief  in  B.erlin.  The  age 
of  Hammurabi  (2100  B.C.)  shows  careful 
portraiture,  but  not  the  spirit  of  the  earlier 
age  ;  the  work  is  well  finished,  and  there 
was  no  hesitation  in  handling  materials 
boldly,  as  on  the  great  black  stele  of  the 
laws,  now  in  Paris.  There  was  a  fine 
sympathetic  treatment  in  private  sculjv 
ture,  as  shown  in  the  beautiful  limestone 
head  of  a  Sumerian  in  Berlin  [seepage  266  \. 
The  last  great  age  was  that  of  the 
Assyrian  Emi)ire.  Under  Ashur-nazir-pal 
(1S85)  the  work  is  fine  and  severe, 
but  without  much  expression. 
Shalmaneser  HI.  (860)  troubled 
more  about  history  than  about 
art,  and  his  i)rincipal  remains  are  the 
long  records  of  the  black  obelisk  and 
the  Balawat  gates,  which  are  but  clumsy 
in  the  forms.  Under  Sennacherib  (705) 
there  is  a  breadth  of  composition,  as 
in  the  siege  of  Lachish,  which  is 
worthily  aided  by  a  more  i:)ictorial 
270 


Fine 

Later 

Art 


style,  while  under  Ashur-bani-pal  (668-626) 
the  art  reaches  both  grace  and  vigour, 
as  in  the  splendid  natural  scenes  of  the 
wild-ass  hunt,  in  the  lion  hunt,  and  in 
the  garden  feast  with  the  queen. 

Mechanics.  The  mechanical  arts  were 
also  greatly  developed.  The  large  size  of 
the  buildings,  the  great  quantities  of  stone 
transported  for  the  sculptures,  and  the 
immense  size  of  many  blocks — the  bulls 
weigh  nearly  50  tons  each — all  show  that 
there  was  not  only  considerable  skill,  but 
also  large  ideals  and  directive  ability. 
Layard  found  that  three  hundred  men  were 
wanted  for  drawing  his  cart  bearing  the 
great  bull ;  and  the  sledge  used  by  the 
Assyrians  for  the  transport  must  have 
needed  as  many,  or  more.  Long  levers  are 
represented  as  having  been  used  in  a 
very  effective  manner  ;  but  the  placing  of 
such  great  blocks  exactly  in  the  right 
position  required  far  more  ability  than  the 


GUDEA  LED  BY  A  GOD 

This  shows  the  Babylonian  art  at  3300  B.C.,  inferior  to  the 
earlier  style  of  Naramsin.  The  original  is  in  Berlin  Museum. 


AN    ARTISTIC     TRIUMPH     OF    ASSYRIAN    SCULPTURE 
Under  Ashur-bani-pal  (668-626  B.C.)  Assyrian   art   reached  both   grace  and   vigour,  as  is  manifest   in   the   splendid 
natural   scene    of   the    wild-ass    hunt,   which    is    here    reproduced    from    the    original    in    the    British    Museum. 


mere  transport.  The  forms  of  tools  were 
much  in  advance  of  those  used  by  the 
Egyptians.  As  far  back  as  Naramsin, 
the  copper  axes  were  all  well  halted,  gener- 
ally with  rings  raised  round  the  edges  of 
the  haft  hole  to  strengthen  the  band  and 
prevent  it  splitting. 

The   forms   of   the   iron    tools   are   also 
excellent ;    and  iron  seems  to  have  been 

w  .  ^  .  common  in  Assyria  at  an 
Modern  Tools  i-       j    .      .r         •  ,1 

-  .     .     ,        earlier  date  than  m  any  other 

of  Ancient  ,  1     1  1       j-     "        ^i 

y^      .  country,  probably  from    the 

tenth  or  twelfth  century  e.g. 
Certainly  the  set  of  Assyrian  tools  left  at 
Thebes  by  an  armourer  of  Esarhaddon  in 
670  B.C.,  show  that  the  principles,  and  even 
the  exact  forms,  of  modern  tools  had 
already  been  reached.  The  chisels  and  rasp 
have  not  been  improved  since  ;  the  saw  is 
the  same  as  the  modern  Oriental  pull-saw, 
but  the  teeth  have  not  an  alternate  set ;  the 
centre-bits  and  files  anticipate  our  forms, 
but  have  not  reached  the  complete  stage. 
The  material  of  most  of  the  edge  tools  is 
steel,  showing  that  the  hardening  was  then 
understood.  The  cutting  of  seals  in  hard 
stones  was  an  early  art,  but  it  was  well 
maintained,  and  some  of  the  most  beautiful 
specimens  are  the  chalcedony  cylinders 
such  as  that  of  Sennacherib  in  London. 
The  engraving  of  the  inscriptions  also 
shows  that  cutting  in  hard  stones  was 
freely  done  on  a  great  scale  ;  but  the 
writing,  being  entirely  in  straight  lines, 
was  much  easier  to  engrave  than  the 
figures  of  natural  objects  of  the  Egyptian 
signs.  Probably  emery  powder  or  copper 
was  the  means  used,  as  in  Egypt. 


The  use  of  an  official  stamp  of  guarantee 
on  uniform  pieces  of  silver  was  adopted  by 
the  time  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  but  as  this 
is  two  centuries  later  than  Greek  coinage 
it  was  probably  copied  from  that.  In  one 
respect  the  Mesopotamian  never  equalled 
the  Egyptian.  The  Memphite  school  of 
work  had  attained  to  a  mechanical  ac- 
curacy which  we  can  scarcely  gauge  ;  their 
errors  on  large  pieces  of  work  were  only  a 
matter  of  thousandths  of  an  inch.  But  the 
Mesopotamian  never  did  a  piece  of  passably 
square  or  regular  stonework  ;  the  inequali- 
ties and  skew  angles  are  glaring,  even  in 
highly  elaborated  works  of  art.  The  sense 
of  accuracy  was  quite  untrained,  and 
neither  Semite  nor  Sumerian  show  any 
ability  in  this  line.  Egypt,  on  the  con- 
trary, started  with  a  prehistoric  race  which 
excelled  in  exquisitely  true  handwork  and 
dexterous  flint  flaking,  and 
with  the  artistic  sense  of  the 
dynastic  people  added,  the 
combination  was  one  of  the 
highest  that  the  world  has  seen. 

Literature.  To  give  any  adequate 
idea  of  the  literature  of  Babylonia  is  far 
beyond  our  scope,  and  only  the  main 
classes  of  it  can  be  named  in  this  outline. 
These  were  : 

I.  Theology  and  Omens.  2.  History. 
3.  Despatches  and  Correspondence.  4.  Lan- 
guage and  Translation.  5.  Mathematics. 
6.  Astronomy.  7.  Geography  and  Natural 
History.     8.  Medicine. 

The  striking  omission  is  that  of  literature 
in  the  form  of  tales  or  poetry  of  actual 
life  ;  there  seems,  amid  all  the  myriads  of 

271 


The  Books 

of 

Babylonia 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    MESOPOTAMIA 


tablets,  to  be  nothing  similar  to  the  tales  of 
the  various  periods  of  Egypt.  We  look  in 
vain  for  the  tales  of  the  magicians,  the 
romances  of  adventure,  of  love,  or  of  his- 
tory, which  restore  to  u-  the  living  v'"  *" 
Egyptia"  tbo-.-.-ij'  Thi^  bdoniu. 
-eve.   ^  '-     Y        -r       •        :c, 

,,  3etK  .  v.       o  lb    ae^       pea  in  nis 

theology  ,  seems  to  have  had  no  play 
of  fancy  o  aste  for  the  excitement  of 
story-telling.  Similarly  in  the  Middle  Ages 
the  "  Thousand  and  One  Nights,"  though 
often  referring  to  Baghdad,  are  yet 
tales  of  entirely  Egyptian  source  and 
idea. 

But  for  his  own  purposes  the  Babylonian 
was  well  educated  from  a  hterary  point  of 
view,  and,  considering  the  complexity  of 
his  writing,  he  was  probably  better  trained 
than  any  modern  people  except  the  Chi- 
nese. The  hundreds  of  signs  which  he 
had  to  remember  had  long  lost  their 
pictorial  significance,  and  needed  an  atten- 
tive memory  and  long  training  ;  yet  not 
only  in  public  documents,  but  also  in  pri- 
vate letters,  mistakes  are  but  rarely 
found.  Classification  of  the  signs,  classified 
lists  of  words  of  Sumerian  and  Semitic, 
grammatical  works,  and  reading  books 
were  the  apparatus  used.. 
Wonderful  ^^^^   ^^^    peasantry  and 

Training  of  sometimes  the  slaves 
Babylonians  learned  to  write,  and  there 
was  hardly  more  need  of  a  professional 
scribe  than  there  is  in  England  to-day. 
But  this  general  eucation  belonged  to  the 
Sumerian  stock,  and  was  much  diminished 
where  the  Semite  was  in  the  majority,  so 
that  in  Assyria  only  the  upper  classes  could 
write,  and  nail-marks  of  contracting  parties 
are  common.  The  feeling  for  hterature  kept 
the  names  of  great  writers  in  remembrance, 
and  the  authors  of  the  main  religious  pieces, 
such  as  the  Epic  of  Gilgames,  are  still 
known.  The  Egyptian,  on  the  other 
hand,  has  not  preserved  the  name  of  a 
single  author  ;  even  Pentaur  was  probably 
only  a  scribe.  The  honouring  of  hterature 
led  to  the  Assyrian  kings  amassing  great 
libraries,  and  to  the  princes  becoming 
librarians  and  secretaries.  The  copying 
of  ancient  tablets  for  the  new  libraries 
was  a  large  business,  carefully  planned  ; 
and  the  scribe  was  required  to  exactly 
state  where  his  original  was  defective  and 
what  uncertainties  existed  in  the  reading. 
Even  private  persons  sought  to  obtain 
favour  by  presenting  copies  of  works 
to  the  temple  libraries. 

i8 


Shall  We  Find 
an  Assyrian 
State  History? 


Of  the  classes  of  writings,  the  religious 
works  are  noticed  later  ;  the  historical 
writings  are  mainly  Assyrian,  recording 
the  constant  wars  with  other  lands,  and 
the  tribute  and  booty  brought  from  them. 
That  there  was  a  complete  State  history  is 
shown  by  the  ready  allusions  to  the  time 
since  certain  events  had  happened.  iVshur- 
bani-pal  recounts  1,635 
years  since  the  Elamite  king 
had  carried  off  an  image. 
Nabonidus  searched  for  and 
found  the  tablet  of  Naramsin,  which  he  says 
had  not  been  seen  for  3,200  years ;  he  recites 
that  there  were  800  years  from  his  time  to 
Shagarakti-buriash,  and  700  years  from 
Burnaburiash  to  Hammurabi.  These 
references  show  that  we  may  hope  to 
recover  a  complete  State  history  from 
Assyria,  as  we  may  hope  yet  for  a  com- 
plete historical  papyrus  from  Egypt. 

The  despatches  and  correspondence  give 
full  light  on  detail  of  politics  and  affairs, 
showing  the  conditions  of  various  countries ; 
and  where  a  sulhcient  number  have  been 
preserved  together  it  is  possible  to  build 
up  a  continuous  history  of  a  period,  as 
in  the  case  of  the  Tellal-Amarna  letters. 
The  yearly  annals  of  a  reign  belong  more 
to  the  historical  division,  and  such  records 
of  Sennacherib,  Ashur-bani-pal,  and  others 
are  of  the  highest  value.  The  private 
letters  give  a  full  view  of  the  current  life  ; 
and  the  business  documents,  especially 
receipts,  are  the  commonest  of  all  records, 
showing  the  trade,  the  law,  and  the 
business  of  the  country  in  all  its  fulness. 

The  tablets  dealing  with  the  Sumerian 
and  Semitic  languages  together,  and  the 
translations  from  one  to  the  other,  we  have 
noted  already.  The  mathematical  tablets 
are  multiplication  tables,  lists  of  multiples 
of  measures,  tables  of  squares  and  cubes, 
and  plans  with  measurements  along  the 
sides,  which  show  the  practical  use  of  the 
science.  The  astronomical  records  were 
already  tabulated  in  the  time  of  the  early 
Semitic  Empire,  Sargon  having 
Beginning  compiled  for  his  library  a  work 
°'  in  seventy-two  books,  the  title 

Astronomy    ^^    ^^^-^^    -^    rendered    "The 

Observations  of  Bel."  The  purpose  of  this 
was  astrological,  like  the  great  mass  of 
short  tablets  reporting  observations  of  a 
later  date.  But  the  inquiries  involved  a 
considerable  familiarity  with  astronomical 
movements,  and  a  mass  of  records  which 
became  of  great  value  to  the  student. 
The  astronomical  tablets  of  the  Seleucid 

273 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


period  are  of  special  value,  as  they  often 
contain  valuable  historical  matter. 

Law,  In  the  domain  of  law  the  Baby- 
lonian had  early  formulated  a  code  from 
the  actual  working  of  decisions.  Case- 
made  law  was  his  basis,  as  in  most  countries, 
and  abstracts  of  important  cases  were 
carefully  preserved  as  precedents.  No 
torture  was  used  upon  witnesses,  and 
ample  investigation  of  the  right  of  a  case 


AVIV'S'-  #- 


jw^^i 


A  KINGS  LETTER  OF  1400  B.C. 
A  clay  tablet  letter  from  Tushratta,  King  of  Mitani,  to 
Amenophis  III.,  King  of  Egypt,  announcing  the  despatch 
of  valuable  gifts  and  begging  Amenophis  to  send  him  a 
large  quantity  of  gold  as  payment  for  expenses 
incurred  by  his  grandfather  in  sendmg  gifts  to  the  King 
of  Egypt,  and  also  as  a  gift  in  return  for  his  daughter, 
a  princess   of    Mitani,    whom   Amenophis    had  married. 

seems  to  have  been  usual,  with  full  cross- 
examination.  High  penalties  were  stipu- 
lated for  the  infringement  of  sales  or  con- 
tracts. The  status  of  women  was  equal 
to  that  of  men  in  the  Sumerian,  but  became 
inferior  in  the  Semitic  law.  Slavery  was 
rather  an  assignation  of  labour  than  a 
control  of  the  person,  as  a  slave  family 
could  not  be  separated.  Slaves  could  hold 
property,  own  other  slaves,  give  witness, 
274 


and  were  sometimes  well  educated.  The 
family  union  was  strong,  as  inherited  land 
could  not  be  sold  without  assent  of 
relatives,  and  boys  and  girls  alike  inherited 
iiiLCstrte  property. 

The  detail  of  the  laws  form  a  long  study, 
but  w  may  here  note  the  main  sections 
of  tiie  great  code  of  Hammurabi,  show- 
ing the  scope  of  the  laws,  and  stating  the 
number  of  enactments. 

Witchcraft  2  JNIarriage  property  19 

Legal  falsehood  3  Women  32 

Theft  3  Votaries  property  7 

Loss  5  Adoption  10 

Child  and  slave  steal-  Assault  20 

ing  7  Doctors  13 

Robbery  5  Builders  6 

Ro^'al  messengers  and  Shipping  7 

officers  16  Cattle  12 

Agriculture  24  Hire  25,  and 

Accounts  8  Slaves  5 

Licensed  traders  6         Distraint  Sc  deposit  13 

Thus  the  whole  scope  of  an  agricultural 
and  commercial  community  was  well  safe- 
guarded, and  little  doubt  left  as  to  general 
principles  and  penalties.  All  this  must 
have  been  the  product  of  innumerable 
cases  and  difficulties  for  two  or  three 
thousand  years,  before'  such  a  complete 
code  was  set  up. 

History  in  Mythology.  The  religion 
has  usually  occupied  a  large  part  of  the 
attention  and  interest  given  to  Mesopo- 
tamia ;  it  is  comparatively  well  known 
owing  to  the  quantity  of  documents  and 
representations.  Here  we  need  only 
mention  such  points  as  bear  on  the  general 
civilisation.  We  have  already  noticed 
how  the  purely  Sumerian  Shamanism,  or 
belief  in  the  spirit  of  every  object,  which 
needed  to  be  appeased,  had  been  tinctured 
by  the  worship  of  personal  deities  of  the 
Semitic  neighbours,  and  how  this  influence 
was  shown  by  borrowing  the  Semitic  beard 
for  the  gods  and  flounced  robe  for  the 
goddesses,  and  occasionally  for  the  gods. 
Thus  the  Semite  was  the  missionary  of 
theism  as  against  animism. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  civilisation  of 
Babylonia  is  expressly  stated  to  have  been 
given  by  Ea,  or  Cannes,  who  rose  from 
the  sea  of  the  Persian  Gulf  ;  he  passed 
the  day  among  men,  and  taught  letters 
and  sciences  and  arts — the  building  of  cities 
and  temples,  and  the  use  of  laws  and  geo- 
metry. Also  he  showed  the  uses  of  seeds 
and  fruits,  and  softened  and  humanised  the 
people,  who  had  lived  in  a  lawless  manner 
like  wild  beasts.  This  full  ascription  of  civi- 
lisation to  sea  immigrants  shows   that  it 


275 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


cannot  be  set  down 
growth,  or  as  due  to 
still  less  to  the  Semite, 
movement  is  roughly 
belonging  to  the 
city  of  Eridu ; 
and  5000  B.C.  is 
the  earliest  date 
at  which  we  can 
suppose  the 
ground  of  that 
city  to  have  been 
dry  land.  Such 
must  be  taken  as 
the  extreme  limit 
of  the  early  civili- 
sation, and  what 
we  find  of  the 
early  kings  of 
about  4700  B.C. 
is  the  first  effi- 
cient  rise  of 
monumental  his- 
tory in  the  land. 
All  this  is  paral- 
lel to  the  early 
civilisation         in 


as    an   indigenous 

the  Sumerian,  or 

The  date  of  this 

indicated  by  Ea, 


came  only  a  few  centuries  earlier  than  the 
mission  of  Ea.  It  may  be  possible  that  there 
is  one  common  source  of  a  seafaring  people 
for  both  civilisations,  and,  if  so,  we  might 
look  to  Hadhra- 
mot  as  being  in 
the  most  likely 
common  centre. 
At  least,  it  is 
always  conveni- 
ent to  explain 
the  unknown  by 
the  unknown. 

The  nature 
gods  of  Apsu  and 
Tiamat ,  the  ocean 
and  the  chaos, 
described  in  the 
first  tablet  of 
the  Creation 
series,  belong  to 
the  primitive 
Sumerian.  "  The 
waters  of  these 
mingled  in  union, 
and  no  fields 
were    embanked. 


A    CAT*  p 


",CENE    IN 

The  interior  of  a  castle,  ii  c-  d  b-  a  kind 
compartments.  In  each  is  1  cup  of  figures 
reUgious  ceremony.  The  p  lion  is  suppon 
adorned  with   a  fringe   of  alte   late  flowers    an 


THE    DAYS    OF    NINEVEH'S    POWER 

ground-plan   v    :h   towers    and   battlements,  is  divided    into   four 


iithe»-  engage'      in  domestic   occupations   or   in  preparations  for  a 
J    ty    columns     probably     of    painted    wood,     and    the   canopy    is 
buds,   like  the  usual   Egyp'  ian   border.     Beneath  the   canopy  is  a 
groom  cleaning  a  horse  with  a   ^urry-comb.     A  eunuch  at  the  entrance  is  receiving  four  prisoners.     Above  are  two 
mummers  dressed  in  the  skins  of  lions,  while  a  figure  with  a  staff  appears  to  be  the  keeper  of  these  monsters. 


Egypt.  That  also  came  in  apparently 
from  the  Red  Sea  at  about  5800  B.C., 
as  the  civilising  movement  which  changed 
the  prehistoric  age  to  the  dynastic.  And  it 

276 


no  islands  were  seen  ;  when  the  gods 
had  not  come  forth,  not  one ;  when  they 
neither  had  being  nor  destinies."  And 
afterward    "  Evil    they    plotted    against 


A    CHASE    IN    THE    DESERT,    RECORDED    ON    THE    MONUMENTS    OF    NINEVEH 
The  series   of  which  this   bas-relief  formed   a   part    appears   to   have  recorded  the   conquest   by  the  Assyrians 
of  an   Arab  tribe   or    nation   who   made    use   of  the   camel    in    war    as    a    beast    of    burden.       This   sculpture 
belongs    to    a  later    period  than  the  bas-relief   from    the  North-West  Palace    at  Nineveh  reproduced  below. 

the  great  gods."  After  an  attempt  of 
Anshar  (perhaps  the  same  as  the  Egyptian 
Anher,  the  sky  god)  to  subdue  Tiamat 
(tablet  2),  Marduk,  the  sun  god,  gains  the 
victory ;  and  in  tablets  3  and  4,  the 
supremacy  of  Marduk  is  finally  confirmed 
by  all  the  gods.  In  this  we  seem  to  have 
the  echoes  of  a  tribal  history  as  in  the 
Egyptian    theology.       The     Shamanistic 


worship  of  a  confused  host  of  warring  and 
malignant  spirits,  is  at  last  subdued  by 
the  worshippers  of  personal  gods  under 
Semitic  influence,  and  of  these  the  people  of 
the  sun  god  take  in  the  end  the  leading 
place.  All  of  these  changes  were,  however, 
long  before  the  political  domination  of 
the  Semite,  which  began  about  3800  B.C., 
with  Sargon. 


ROYAL    SPORT     IN    THE    DAYS    OF    ANCIENT    NINEVEH 
This  bas-relief  probably   formed  part   of  a   subject  representing  the     King  of  Nineveh   in   his   chariot   hunting 
the  wild   bull.     The   warrior  rides   on   one   horse    and    leads    a   second,   richly   caparisoned,   for   the   use   of  the 
monarch.       Numerous    small    marks    on    the    body    of  the    animal  probably    denote    long    and    shaggy  hair. 

■  277 


278 


"y 


\  „ 


2 

nl 

O 

J5 

J 

■S 

> 

& 

ca 

T3 

<; 

_aj 

m 

2 

(U 

H 

s 

z 

o 

a 

>> 

u 

•y 

2 

,^ 

< 

'o 

ti, 

a 

O 

rt 

V 

ji 

CO 

w 

H 

a 

U 

'B 

u 

Qi 

a 

W 

0) 

Q 

'« 

2 

O 

^ 

tt 

u 
a; 

H 

J2 

c 

tu 

■3 

O 

"3. 

0) 

w 

J3 

2 

a 

o 

0 

u< 

"3 

o 

XI 

rt 

H 

CQ 

U< 

0 

u 

u 

■4 

0) 

0 

c/5 

H 

a> 

J3 

< 

'0 

K 

(L) 

H 

'5) 

a 
0 

< 

'•3 

tt 

u 

Q 

■*^ 

P 

J3 

(^ 

-4J 

279 


A    VIEW    OF    HILLAH,     THE     MODERN     BABYLON 


We  have  now  reviewed  the  questions  of 
the  rise  of  civiHsation,  as  apart  from  the 
ordinary  history  of  the  countries,  which  is 
dealt  with  in  its  proper  place  in  this  work. 
Though  it  is  difficult,  and  rather  mislead- 
ing, to  look  at  civilisation  and  the  political 
history  apart,  yet,  so  much  has  come  to 
light  in  recent  years  to  clear  our  view  of  the 
origins  of  culture  that  we  may  be  allowed 
to  focus  our  attention  on  that  view  of 
man,  apart  from  his  better  known  historv. 


We  seem  at  last  to  have  reached  back  to 
a  definite  beginning  of  arts  and  capacities 
on  both  the  Nile  and  the  Euphrates,  and 
to  have  touched  a  condition  of  things  that 
seems  to  point  in  both  lands  to  some 
external  source  of  a  yet  pre-existing 
culture,  which  yet  has  to  be  traced. 
I  am  happy  to  add  that  one  of  our  greatest 
Babylonian  scholars,  Dr.  Pinches,  concurs 
in  the  view  of  his  subject  which  is  here 
presented.  W.  M.  Flinpfrs  Petrie 


THE    EXILES    IN    BABYLON 
"  By  the  rivers  of  Babylon  there  we  sat  down ;  yea,  we  wept,"     From  the  painting  by  Bendemann. 


280 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION 

IN    EUROPE 
By    DAVID    GEORGE    HOGARTH,    M.A. 


OUT  of  the  East  came  Light  "  has  been 
the  text  on  which  all  great  historians 
of  civilisation  have  preached,  from  the 
authors  of  the  Mosaic  literature  down 
through  Greek  and  Roman  times  to  our 
own.  Hebrew  writers  have  looked  back  to 
Mesopotamia  ;  Greek  writers  to  Egypt  ; 
Roman  writers  to  Greece;  writers  of  Western 
and  Northern  Europe  and  the  New  World 
to  Rome,  Greece,  and  Palestine.  Their  belief 
is  justified  in  so  far  as  it  is  based  on  two 
great  facts.  Man  first  found  in  the  warm, 
alluvial  valleys  of  Southern  Asia  and 
North-Eastern  Africa  the  conditions  of 
chmate  and  soil  most  favourable  to  his 
upward  progress  from  the  savage  state ;  and 
from  these  regions,  so  soon  as  with  increase 
of  numbers  he  was  moved  to  migrate,  his 
steps  were  turned  by  the  geographical 
conditions  surrounding  his  early  homes, 
in  a  general  way,  westward.  He  knew  not 
yet  how  to  cross  broad  seas ;  deserts, 
sandy  steppes,  high  mountains  and  tropi- 
cal forests  and  swamps  were 


"Out  of  the 
East 
came  Light 


equally  deterrent.    The  Polar 
,,  ice-sheet,  which  had  extended 

in  Pleistocene  times  to  the 
Caspian,  Black  Sea,  and  Danube  basins, 
and  still  lay,  in  the  dawn  of  human  civilisa- 
tion, far  south  of  its  present  limits,  pro- 
bably rendered,  with  its  wide  fringe  of 
impassable  moraine,  forest,  and  tundra 
country,  all  the  lands  included  in  the 
present  Emjiire  of  Russia  singularly  in- 
hospitable. Whoso  looks  at  the  map  of 
the  Western  Hemisphere,  bearing  these 
facts  in  mind,  will  see  at  once  that  the 
line  of  least  resistance,  and,  indeed,  the 
only  possible  line,  led  the  men  of  the 
great  sub-tropic  river  valleys  towards  and 
along  the  Mediterranean  coasts. 

In  so  far,  therefore,  as  European  civilisa- 
tion is  a  state  of  things  due  to  influences 
from  without,  it  is  due  to  the  East ;  but 
that  is  very  far  from  the  whole  explanation 
of  its  origin.  The  impulse  to  rise  above 
savagery  has  not  always — not,  indeed, 
usually — come  to  peoples  from  without ; 
and    probably   in   primitive   time,   when 


communications  were  slow  and  difficult  to 

a  degree  which  we  can  hardly  reahse,  the 

origin  of  local  culture  was  seldom  or  never 

to  be  accounted  for  thus.    In  modern  days 

there  have  been  obvious  instances  to  the 

contrary ;    but  even  now    it    remains   to 

be  seen  how   far   civilisations   originated 

among   absolutely   barbarous   peoples   by 

-,..,.    ,.      contact   with  higher  races   are 
Civilisation  ,  i   i-    •  ,,  ^^ 

from  ^        ^       hvmg  growths.      Ex- 

Without  amples  of  the  modification  and 
possible  elevation  of  ancient 
indigenous  societies  by  incoming  aliens, 
such  as  have  been  seen  in  Mexico  or  Peru, 
India  or  Japan,  Egypt  or  Barbary,  are 
not  in  point ;  for  in  these  cases  local 
civilisations  certainly  existed  long  before 
the  foreign  influence.  We  must  look  to 
the  history  of  the  relations  of  white  and 
negro,  or  other  savage,  races  in  the  homes 
of  the  latter,  and  the  results  of  such 
inquiries  are  far  from  conclusive.  Does 
civilisation  so  originated  grow  and  thrive  ? 
Do  even  the  races  thus  civilised  themselves 
any  longer  thrive  and  grow  ?  Our  antipo- 
dean colonies,  and  the  story  of  the  native 
races  of  North  America,  if  there  were  no 
other  instances,  would  not  admit  a  cate- 
gorical affirmative.  Nay,  rather,  the 
evidence  so  far  available  tends  to  discount 
the  permanence  of  transferred  civilisation, 
and  to  throw  doubt  on  the  continued 
vitality  of  races  so  civilised. 

It  is  necessary  to  raise  this  question  at 
the  outset  of  the  present  essay  because  it 
has  been  too  often  assumed,  both  implicitly 
and  explicitly,  by  historians  of  our  civilisa- 
tion, that  all  the  cultural  devel- 
opment of  Central,  Western, 
and  Northern  Europe  has  been 
due  to  alien  influence,  exerted 
from  the  south  and  south-east,  ana 
mainly  by  the  agency  of  the  Greek, 
Graeco  -  Roman,  and  Grseco  -  Romano  - 
Semitic  (the  Christian)  systems.  Maine's 
famous  dictum  that  "  Nothing  moves  in 
the  world  which  is  not  Greek  in  origin  " 
has  long  dominated  our  thoughts.  Yet 
that  magnificent  generalisation  is  contrary 

281 


The  Escape 

from 

Savagery 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


not  only  to  inherent  probability,  but  to 
known  fact.  Escape  from  the  savage 
state,  as  Buckle  showed,  depends  in  the 
first  place  on  the  existence  of  such  con- 
ditions of  geographical  environment  as 
favour  the  accumulation  of  wealth  and 
the  development  of  a  leisured  class — that 
is,  such  as  conduce  to  the  production  of  a 
^     ...  good  deal  more  than  the  mini- 

_        ,.  , ,     mum    necessary  lor     lite.     It 

Essential  for  j^i  r  v_  ^    i  i 

^.  ...  ^.  can,  therefore,  have  taken  place 
wherever  man  found  compara- 
tively genial  climate  and  remunerative 
soil,  and,  in  process  of  time,  made  for 
himself,  by  clearing  forests  or  draining 
swamps,  an  arable  area  which  would  feed 
him  and  his  more  abundantly  than  was 
absolutely  necessary. 

Where  these  conditions  were  presumably 
present  it  is  unreasonable  to  suppose  that 
the  beginnings  of  civilisation  were  deferred 
age  after  age,  until  late  in  time  some 
stimulus  chanced  to  be  imparted  by  an  alien 
race  or  races  which  had,  after  all,  advanced 
towards  their  own  civilisation,  albeit 
earlier,  through  the  operation  of  similar 
conditions  elsewhere.  In  the  European 
areas  inhabited  by  the  Celtic  and 
Germanic  peoples,  for  instance,  long 
before  we  have  the  slightest  reason  to 
believe  that  these  can  have  come  into 
intimate  relation  with  the  civilisations  of 
the  South  and  East,  both  climate  and  soil 
were  unquestionably  favourable,  and  local 
civilisations  cannot  but  have  been  origin- 
ated independently.  As  has  been  well  said, 
"  Man  everywhere  has  the  same  humble 
beginnings  "  ;  and,  up  to  a  certain  point, 
which  is  found  to  be,  in  fact,  far  later 
than  the  inception  of  some  kind  of  culture, 
he  will  satisfy  his  primitive  needs  and 
desires  in  very  much  the  same  ways. 

Under      certain       conditions,      known 

to    have    arisen    independently   in    many 

different  regions  of  the  earth,  articles  of 

luxury  and  art,  irrefragable  witnesses  to 

incipient  civilisation,  begin  to  be  produced 

-      ^             spontaneously.     To  what  re- 

Spontaneous          .                •     i      i  j. 

J:  ...  ^.  mote  periods  have  not  cave 
Civilisation                    ' 


in  Europe 


deposits  thrown  back  the 
history  of  artistic  effort  in  the 
valleys  of  Gaul  ?  And  what  credit,  in 
reason,  can  be  given  to  Greece,  or  even  to 
Rome,  for  the  elaborate  social  order  of  the 
Teutonic  tribes,  which  was  of  ancient 
standing  when  first  the  Romans  pene- 
trated beyond  the  Danube  and  Rhine  ? 
So  well  rooted  in  the  soil,  so  potent  and 
so  widely  diffused  were  the  Teutonic  and 

282 


Celtic  social  systems,  that  in  the  history 
of  our  actual  civilisation  they  are  factors 
as  worthy  of  consideration  as  the  influences 
of  Rome,  Greece,  or  Palestine.  If  Graeco- 
Roman  Christianity  came  greatly  to  modify 
them  in  the  end,  they  had,  perhaps,  ere 
that,  modified  Christianity  itself  hardly 
less  ;  and  the  social  superiority  of  the 
northern  and  western  adherents  of  the 
now  dominant  religion  is  probably  as 
much  due  to  character  and  habits  deve- 
loped before  ever  its  creed  was  formulated, 
as  the  dominance  of  the  Turkish  peoples 
in  the  Islamic  system  is  undoubtedly  due 
to  social  characteristics  evolved  in  the 
oases  and  steppe-lands  of  Central  Asia  far 
back  in  the  "  Times  of  Ignorance." 

Let  it,  therefore,  be  understood  that  in 
the  following  pages  it  is  not  necessarily 
the  whole  origin  of  European  civilisation 
that  is  being  set  forth,  but  the  modi- 
fication and  heightening  of  probably 
pre-existent  European  culture  by  the  first 
influences  of  the  Nearer  East  which  can 
be  supposed  to  have  reached  it.  Of  these 
influences  the  effect  is  to  some  extent  a 
matter  of  inference  only.  We  cannot 
always,  or,  indeed,  often,  point  with  any 
assurance  to  actual  results  of  their  action. 
In  great  part  we  must  still  be  content 
with  little  more  than  a  demonstration 
that  directly  along  certain  lines  of  com- 
munication, or  indirectly  through  certain 
intermediaries,  the  civilisations  of  the 
South  could,  or  did,  come  into  relation 
with  European  areas  at  an  early  age. 

The  sea   routes  which  were 

e  wo  jYiost  likely  to  be  used  in  ruder 
«       P  ages    by    Levantine    mariners, 

after  leaving  the  Nile  estuaries 
or  the  Syrian  ports — which,  as  a  matter  of 
fact,  are  known  to  have  been  most  used — 
are :  that  which  followed  the  littoral  of  Asia 
Minor  to  Rhodes,  whence  it  bifurcated,  to 
Crete  on  the  one  hand,  and  to  the  ^Egean 
isles  and  coasts  on  the  other ;  or  that  strik- 
ing across  the  narrow  strait  to  Cyprus,  and 
thence  by  way  of  Rhodes,  or  directly,  to 
Crete.  In  connection  with  both  these 
routes,  the  importance  of  Crete  and 
Rhodes,  and  especially  the  former,  must 
be  obvious.  Thence  the  Cyrenean  and 
Carthaginian  })rojections  of  Africa  were 
reached  with  greater  ease  than  by  way 
of  the  littoral  to  west  of  Egypt, 
which,  for  some  hundreds  of  miles,  is 
desert,  reef-girt,  almost  harbourless,  and 
pitilessly  vexed  by  an  on-shore  wind. 
From  Carthage,   Sicily   and    the    Italian 


O  1««        JOO     300 


THE    GREAT    SEA    ROUTES    OF    ANCIENT    CIVILISATION 

Along:  the  routes  marked  in  this  map  lay  the  course  of  ^gean  and  Phoenician  civilisation.  The  importance  of  Crete 
and  Rhodes  in  the  spreading  of  civilisation  is  clearly  seen;  they  may  be  called  the  "half-way  houses"  between 
Mesopotamian  culture,  with  its  seat  in  the  valley  of  the  Euphrates,  and  Egyptian  culture,  in  the  valley  of  the  Nile. 


peninsula    were  readily  accessible,   or  the 

Gibraltar  strait   and    the    Iberian    shores 

could    be   made  after   coasting  a   littoral 

much     kinder    to   navigation    than    that 

between  Egypt  and  the  western  bight  of 

the  Syrtis. 

The  land  routes  in  chief  were  also  two. 

The  Nile  valley,  closed  by  desert  on  the 

_  western  side,  had  comparatively 

g        ^        easy  access  to  the  great  natural 

¥      J  n     4     road  which,  leading  northwards 

Land  Routes  , ,  '    .  o  ,     ^      , 

through  Syria,    passes  at  first 

along  the  Palestinian  littoral,  and  then 
through  the  central  cleft  between  the 
Lebanons  to  the  Orontes  valley.  Mesopo- 
tamian traders,  following  up  the  Euphrates 
till  they  had  left  the  desert  part  of  its 
course  behind  them,  fell  into  this  same  road 
in  the  region  of  Aleppo  and  Antioch. 
Thence  by  the  easy  passes  which  turn  the 
southern  end  of  Mount  Amanus,  the  com- 
bined caravans  reached  Tarsus,  penetrated 
Taurus  by  the  gap  of  the  Cilician  Gates, 
and  found  themselves  on  the  plateau  of 
Asia  Minor  with  a  choice  of  easy  routes 
leading  either  to  the  rich  western  littoral, 
or  the  north-western  straits,  and  from 
any  and  every  point  offering  safe  passage 
to  South-eastern  Europe.  This  was  the 
only  land  route  for  Egyptian  civilisation. 
But  the  Mesopotamian  had  an  alternative 
one,  leading  by  way  of  the  upper  Tigris 
valley  to  the  north   of   Taurus   and  the 


Cappadocian  plateau,  whence  it  descended 
the  Sangarius  and  debouched,  like  the 
first  route,  on  either  the  north-western  or 
the  western  coast  of  Anatolia. 

In  speaking  of  such  land  routes,  we  do 
not,  of  course,  mean  to  imply  the  existence 
of  any  made  road,  nor  even  of  a  single 
track.  When  most  definite,  they  probably 
resembled  the  Syrian  Pilgrim  Way — a 
skein  of  separate  paths  now  spreading 
widely,  now  running  into  and  across  one 
another  ;  and  doubtless  the  early  tracks 
diverged  far  more  than  this,  and  making 
great  elbows,  followed  now  one  valley, 
now  another,  to  meet  again  only  after 
many  days.  One  of  the  great  hues  from 
Mesopotamia  to  the  western  Anatohan 
coast,  that  described  last  in  our  enumera- 
tion, came  to  be  defined  more  strictly 
than  the  rest,  perhaps  by  the  Kings  of 
Nineveh  and  their  "  Hittite  "  rivals  and 
allies  in  Cappadocia,  and  was  known  in  the 
Persian  era  to  the  Greeks   as  the  Royal 

Th    R      1    ^^^^  "  °^  ^^^  ^^^*^  go  up  iuto 
c     oya     ^gjg^"     g^^  ^^  ^Yie  much  earlier 

into  As^a  ^^^^  'With  which  we  are  most 
concerned,  the  influences  of  the 
East  did  not  rush  westward  torrent-wise 
in  one  bed,  but  soaked  slowly,  finding  a 
way  now  here,  now  there,  in  one  general 
westward  direction,  and  sending  offshoots 
far  out  to  right  and  left  of  the  main 
streams. 

283 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    EUROPE 


It  has  been  said  that  there  is  evidence 
of  the  routes  just  indicated  having  been, 
in  fact,  those  most  used.  It  is  upon  these 
hues,  and  no  others,  that  we  find  certain 
remarkable  focuses  of  early  culture  dis- 
posed as  half-way  houses  between  theMeso- 
potamian  and  Egyptian  civilisations  on  the 
one  hand,  and  continental  Europe  on  the 
other.  These  are,  in  relation  to  the  sea 
routes,  first,  the  prehistoric  iEgean 
civilisation,  focused  from  the  first  in 
Crete,  but  extended  to  all  isles  and 
peninsulas  of  South-eastern  Europe  from 
Cyprus  to  Sardinia  and  Spain ;  and, 
secondly,  the  Phoenician,  originated  on 
the  Syrian  coast,  but  focused  also  at  a 
later  time  at  a  second  point  much  farther 
west — namely,  on  that  Carthaginian  pro- 
jection, whence  lay  easy  sea-ways  to  Sicily 
and  Italy  and  all  the  western  seas.  Hard 
by  the  Egyptian  land  route  lay  this  same 
Phoenician  society;  while  all  about  its 
point  of  junction  with  the  Euphrates 
road,  on  both  its  continuations  north- 
westward, and  on  the  northern  road  from 
Mesopotamia  so  soon  as  this  had  passed 
Euphrates,   was   established   the  singular 

but  as  yet  little  understood 
Half-way        civilisation     which    we    call 

Hittite.     How  early  we  may 


Houses  of 
Civilisation 


assume  the  latter's  existence 
in  North  Syria  is  still  doubtful ;  but  since 
the  discoveries  of  Winckler  at  Boghaz  Keui, 
there  is  little  question  that  it  was  focused 
in  prehistoric  time  in  Northern  Cappa- 
docia,  whence  its  influence  seems  to  have 
radiated  southward  to  the  confines  of 
Palestine,  and  westward  to  Lydia  and 
almost  the  shore  of  the  ^gean  Sea.  It 
is  to  this  North  Cappadocian  region 
that  the  Tigris  route  from  Assyria  and 
Babylonia,  which  was  afterwards  the  Per- 
sian "  Royal  Road,"  tended.  Among  these 
civilisations  the  most  imjiortant  for  our 
present  purpose  is  the  ^gean,  because 
its  geographical  area  touched  at  some  point 
all  the  westward  roads,  whether  by  sea  or 
land  ;  and,  moreover,  because  it  is  the 
one  which  actual  evidence  both  dates  from 
the  remotest  antiquity  and  most  clearly 
proves  to  have  been  operative  on  Europe, 
especially  on  the  most  expansive  of  its  early 
cultures,  the  Hellenic.  The  recent  explora- 
tion of  Crete,  due  in  the  main  to  Messrs. 
Arthur  Evans  and  Federico  Halbherr,  has 
enhanced  enormously  the  significance  of 
the  civihsation  revealed  to  the  modern 
world  at  Hissarlik  and  Mycenae  by  the 
faith  and  fervour  of  Henry  Schliemann. 


Far-back 
Evidences  of 
Culture 


We  are  now  assured  of  certain  facts  of 
much  moment  to  our  inquiry.  Firstly, 
that  this  civilisation  was  developed  origin- 
ally from  its  rudest  beginnings  within  the 
JEgean  area  itself.  This  is  proved  by 
evidence  of  the  uninterrupted  evolution 
of  fabrics  and  decoration,  especially  in 
ceramic  ware,  produced  at  Cnossus  from 
the  dawn  of  the  historic 
Hellenic  period  right  back  to 
Neolithic  time.  At  various 
points  in  this  long  retrocession 
we  can  place  the  Cnossian  culture  in 
synchronic  relation  with  the  Egyptian 
by  the  presence  both  of  Egyptian  objects 
in  the  ^gean  strata,  and  ^gean  in  the 
Egyptian.  These  points  correspond  with 
the  highest  developments  respectively 
of  the  New,  Middle,  and  Old  Pharaonic 
Empires — moments  at  which  we  should 
naturally  expect  to  find  evidence  of  inter- 
national communication.  The  earliest 
point  indicated  by  these  synchronisms 
lies  possibly  as  far  back  as  the  First 
Dynasty,  if  certain  vases,  exported 
apparently  from  the  ^Egean  as  vehicles 
for  colouring  matter,  and  found  by 
Dr.  Petrie  at  Abydos,  are  accepted  as  of 
the  remote  date  to  which  their  discoverer 
attributed  them ;  but  in  any  case  the  con- 
temporaneity of  some  part  of  the  Old 
Empire  period  with  the  iEgean  civilisa- 
tion is  assured,  and  that,  moreover,  when 
the  latter  was  already  far  advanced 
beyond  its  rudest  origins,  as  represented 
by  the  contents  of  the  thick  strata  of 
yellow  clay  which  underlie  the  earliest 
structures  at  Cnossus. 

Thus  is  the  indigenous  origin  of  Mgean 
civilisation  assured.  So  also  is  the  in- 
dependence of  its  after  development. 
The  typical  Cretan  pottery,  known  as 
the  "  Kamares "  style  and  Hneally 
descended  from  Neolithic  ware,  which 
attained,  about  the  acme  of  the  Pharaonic 
Middle  Empire  a  perfection  both  of  fabric 
and  ornament  worthy  of  the  highest 
ceramic  products  of  any  age, 

-,.^...  ^^.'^^  remained  absolutely  distinct. 
Civilisation      t-,  ■     ,  j  , 

.    .,  ,.  Ihe  same  mdependence  cha- 

ts Native  ,      ■  f  , 

racterises     a     later     ceramic 

product  of  the  i5igean,  a  glazed  ware  with 
monochrome  decoration,  which  went  into 
Egypt  abundantly  under  the  Eighteenth 
Dynasty,  and  especially  when  Amen- 
hotep  IV.,  "  Khuenaten,"  was  reigning 
in  his  new  capital  at  Tell-el-Amarna.  Nor 
is  iEgean  art  distinctive  only  in  its 
humbler    products.      The     frescoes,     the 

285 


HISTORY 


WORLD 


rinr 


THESEION   TEMPLE,   ATHENS:   DORIC   ORDER   OF  ARCHITECTURE 
The  perfection  of  the  Hellenic  style,  derived  from^gean  architecture.   5th  century  B.C. 

plaster  reliefs,  the  chased  work  in  precious 
metals,  the  ivory  carvings,  and  the   gem 
intaglios  of  the  JEgea.n  area,  of  which  Sir 
Charles  Newton  said  thirty  years  ago  that 
they  were  not  to  be  confounded  with  pro- 
ducts of   any  other  glyptic  art,  show   the 
development  and  retention  of  an  in- 
dividual   naturalistic   style — a  style 
which  reacted  on  the  fresco  paintings    L^_ 
of   Egypt    itself    under   Khuenaten. 
Finally,   to  clinch   the   proof   of  its 
independence  with  the  strongest  pos- 
sible argument,  the  JEgesin  civilisa- 
tion, as  soon  as  it  became  articulate, 
evolved  for  itself,  in  Crete  at  any  rate, 
a  system  of  writing,  displayed  to  us 
on  some  thousands  of  surviving  clay 
documents,  which  was  purely  its  own, 
and  cannot  be   interpreted  by  com- 
parison with  any  other  known  script. 

Secondly,  it  is  now  known  that 
this  civilisation,  of  remote  indigenous 
origin  and  independent  development, 
reached  a  very  high  point  of  achieve- 
ment in  many  respects  which  afford 
the  best-known  tests  of  culture — 
namely,  in  its  artistic  products,  ex- 
tant examples  of  which  of^er  ample 
evidence  of  wonderfully  close  study 
of  natural  forms,  of  mastery  of 
decorative  principles  and  their  exe- 
cution, and  of  a  sort  of  idealistic 
quality,  which  has  been  rightly 
called   "  a  premonition  of  the  later 

286 


Hellenic  "  ;  also,  in 
architectural  construc- 
tion and  the  organisa- 
tion of  domestic  com- 
fort, as  displayed  in  the 
palaces  at  Cnossus  and 
Phffistus,  with  their 
superposed  stories, 
their  broad  stairways 
of  many  flights,  their 
rich  ornament,  their 
arrangements  for  ad- 
mitting air  and  light, 
and  their  astonishing 
systems  of  sanitation 
and  drainage.  The 
written  documents 
tound,  though  still 
undeciphered,  plainly 
attest  an  advanced 
knowledge  of  account- 
keeping  and  correspon- 
dence. The  frescoes  and 
gem  scenes,  as  well  as 
many  surviving  objects 
of  luxury,  attest  the  existence  of  a  leisured 
and  pleasure-loving  class ;  and,  lastly,  the 
tribute-tallies  of  Cnossus  support  the  in- 
ference which  is  legitimately  drawn  from 
the  uniformity  of  certain  material  objects 
all  over  the  .-Egean  area  at  certain  periods 


TEMPLE    OF  WINGLESS   VICTORY  :    IONIC    ORDER 
The  perfection  of  the  second  Hellenic  style,  refined  from  the  Doric, 
probably  in  the  first  place  by  Asiatic  Greeks.     Fifth  century  B.C. 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    EUROPE 


— notably  that  contemporaneous  with  the 
earUer  part  of  the  Eighteenth  Egyptian 
Dynasty— and  also  from  the  wide  range  of 
certain  place-names,  that  there  was  an 
extensive  imperial  organisation.  The  centre 
of  this  empire,  as  well  as  the  original  focus 
of  the  civilisation,  was  almost  beyond  ques- 
tion in  Crete.  The  prejudice  in  favour  of 
other  focuses  raised  by  the  priority  of 
JEgesm  discoveries  elsewhere,  especially 
those  made  in  the  Argohd,  has  been  greatly 
weakened  by  demonstration  of  the  superior 
catholicity  and  quality  of  Cretan  culture, 
and  by  recognition  of  the  failure  of  Mycenae 
to  offer  evidence  of  anything  like  the  same 
antiquity.  And  no  more  need  be  said  here 
to  counteract  it  than  that,  if  Buckle's 
statement  of  the  climatic  and  geographical 
conditions  necessary  to  the  first  develop- 
ment and  upward  progress  of  culture  be 
sound,  those  conditions  were  never  present 
in  plenitude,  any  where  in  the  vEgean  area 
except  in  Crete.  There  are  found  in  the 
most  conspicuous  degree  the  combination 
of  these  geographical  features— large  tracts 
of  fertile  and  deep  lowland  soil ;  moun- 
tains so  situated  as  to  cause  abundant 
precipitation,  and  so  high  as 
The  Contact  ^^  ^^^^^  ^^^^  against  the  early 


of  Early 
Civilisations 


summer ;     absence     of    both 
swamps  and  desert  areas  ;  and 
a  climate  not  prone  to  extremes. 

Like  all  other  high  civilisations  the 
^gean  both  borrowed  and  lent.  Since 
its  debts  could  be  contracted  only  with 
contemporary  cultures  as  high  as  its  own, 
they  were  owed  mainly  to  Egypt  and 
Babylonia,  while  its  loans  went  out 
chiefly  to  lower  civilisations  further  re- 
moved than  itself  from  the  eastern  centres, 
those,  namely,  of  the  European  continent. 
As  regards  Egypt,  something  has  been  said 
already  of  its  intercourse  with  the  iE:gean 
in  all  ages  of  the  latter's  prehistoric 
period.  The  evidence  of  that  intercourse, 
known  even  before  the  exploration  of 
Crete,  was  fairly  abundant,  though 
limited  almost  entirely  to  later  ages  of 
^gean  culture,  often  caUed  particularly 
"  Mycenaean."  The  "  pre-Cretan  "  case 
was  set  forth  very  concisely  in  a  paper 
read  before  the  Royal  Society  of  Literature 
in  1897  by  Professor  Flinders  Petrie,  who 
enumerated  the  objects  of  Egyptian  fabric 
or  style  found  on  ^Egean  sites,  notably  at 
Mycenae,  and  in  Cyprus  and  Rhodes ; 
and  of  objects  of  .<Egean  style  or  fabric 
found  in  Egypt,  notably  at  Thebes, 
Memphis  and  Tell-el-Amarna,  and  in  the 


Fayum.  One  word  of  warning  only 
may  be  added — that  the  occurrence  ol 
such  imported  objects,  especially  if  they 
be  of  the  amulet  class,  on  a  site  of  a  certain 
date  does  not  necessarily  imply  exact 
contemporaneity  with  the  period  at  which 
the  objects  were  actually  produced;  for 
they  may  well  have  been  carried  hither 
and  thither  in  the  stream  of 
What  Crete  ^j-g^^g  jq^  some  time  ere  coming 
^^   .  to  rest,  and  been  long  preserved 

Taught  us  aftgi-wards.  Some  of  the 
Cypriote  and  Rhodian  tombs,  for  example, 
in  which  scarabs  and  other  Egyptian 
objects  of  the  Eighteenth  Pharaonic 
Dynasty  have  been  found,  are  probably 
considerably  later  than  that  dynasty. 

Crete  has  largely  reinforced  this  evidence, 
not  only  by  throwing  it  back  to  a  much 
earlier  time  than  that  of  the  Eighteenth 
Dynasty,  but  by  proving  that  in  its  later 
periods  JEgea.n  art  had  come  to  be  con- 
siderably modified,  both  in  forms  and  in 
motives  and  treatment  of  decoration,  by 
the  art  of  Egypt.  We  have  then  to  do, 
not  merely  with  mutuahy  imported  objects, 
but,  much  more  than  was  previously 
understood,  with  the  mutual  action  of 
influences — the  strongest  possible  proof 
of  close  intercourse.  On  the.^gean  side, 
our  sole  concern  at  present,  are  now  found 
scenes  represented  in  fresco-painting  or 
metal-work  —  for  example,  the  mural 
scene  with  a  river  and  palms  at  Cnossus, 
and  the  well-known  cat-hunting  scene 
inlaid  on  a  Mycenaean  poniard — and  also 
decorative  motives  which  are  of  obvious 
Egyptian  parentage.  Other  motives  pro- 
claim their  aliea  origin  by  more  or  less 
mistaken  treatment.  The  best  instance 
in  point  is  the  use  made  of  the  lotus 
motive  in  Greece  and  the  isles,  where  the 
flower  was  never  domiciled. 

For  influences  of  the  Mesopotamian 
civilisation  we  have  to  look  in  the  main 
to  the  early  civihsations  of  Syria  and  Asia 
Minor  ;  but  evidence  is  not  wholly  wanting 
on  iEgean  sites.  A  Babylonian 
Influence  of  (,  i^^der  came  to  light  at  Cnos- 
Egypt  and  ^^^ .  ^^^  fashion  of  dress, 
Mesopotamia  ggpg^^i^Hy  female,  as  shown  in 
iEgean  frescoes  and  gems,  is  very  like 
the  Babylonian,  from  whatever  primitive 
garments  it  had  been  developed  ;  and  in 
other  respects  also  the  intagho  class  of 
Mgean  art  products  shows  at  least  as 
much  Mesopotamian  as  Egyptian  in- 
fluence. It  has  borrowed  the  decoration  of 
both  cyhnders  and  scarabs  ;  but  it  proves 

287 


PALLAS  ATHENA,  THE  MAIDEN  GODDESS  OF  ATHENS 

One   of   the   chief  glories   of  the   art   of  ancient   Greece   left   to   the   modern   world.      Athena  was  the  goddess  and 

protectress  of  Athens,  and  her  statue  stood  at  the  height  of  the  Acropolis,  dominating  the  city. 

288 


THE    SUPREME    MONUMENT    OF    ANCIENT    GREECE    LEFT    TO    THE    MODERN    WORLD 
The  Venus  of  Milo,  one  of  the  noblest  examples  of  Greek  art,  and  one  of  the  most  famous  statues  extant.     Found 
at  Milo,  in  Crete,  about  loo  B.C.,  and  now  in  the  Louvre,  Paris.  , 


19 


289 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


its  essential  independence  all  the  time  by 
never  adopting  the  forms  of  either  of  those 
characteristic  alien  vehicles  of  glyptic  art. 
Lastly,  in  the  most  important  of  all 
aspects  of  early  civilisation — the  religious — 
we  now  know  that  the  ^^igean  approxi- 
mated very  closely  to  the  old  civilisations 
to  south  and  east  of  it.  The  main  idea 
of  its  cult  was  that  which  seems 


Religious 
Ideas  of 

Early  Times 


to  have  been  the  oldest  and  the 
most  dominant  in  such  cults — 


namely,  the  worship  of  the  re- 
productive force  of  Nature.  This  idea  was 
embodied,  as  soon  as  divinities  were 
imagined  in  human  shape,  in  feminine  form, 
the  desired  relation  of  divinity  to  humanity 
being  expressed  by  the  addition  of  a  son- 
consort.  How  far  other  features  of  this 
cult,  common  to  the  south-eastern  lands — 
such  as  the  descent  of  the  son  to  the 
human  race,  his  periodical  death  at  the 
hands  of  the  latter,  and  his  joyful  resur- 
rection— were  present,  we  do  not  yet 
know.  It  would  probably  be  false  to 
ascribe  the  presence  of  this  cult  idea  in 
iEgean  civilisation  to  any  foreign  influence, 
for  it  seems  to  be  a  necessary  expression 
of  the  religious  sense  of  many  peoples, 
and  is  as  likely  to  have  been  as  indigenous 
in  the  case  of  Rhea  and  Zeus  (to  give  the 
Divine  pair  their  possible  .-Egean  names)  as 
in  those  of  Isis  and  Osiris,  or  Ashtaroth  and 
Tammuz-Adon.  But  we  may  note  first 
that  here  was  a  vital  bond  of  affinity 
between  the  ^^gean  folk  and  their  main- 
land neighbours  on  east  and  south,  and 
second,  that  long  before  historic  Hellenic 
times  the  former  had  arrived  at  that  essen- 
tial condition  of  progressive  civilisation,  an 
anthro})omorphic  conception  of  divinity. 

Enough  has  now  been  said  to  show 
that  /Egean  civilisation  was  both  a  broad 
channel  througli  which  influences  of  Asiatic 
and  Egyptian  culture  could  and  did  flow, 
and  also  in  itself  of  such  importance  as  to 
be  likely  to  exert  influence  on  nascent 
civilisation  in  Europe.  To  see  whether 
it  did  so,  we  look  first  to  the 
culture  which  succeeded 
it  in  its  own  area,  the 
Hellenic  culture  of  the  his- 
toric age,  about  whose  action,  exerted  in- 
directly on  all  subsequent  civilisation,  there 
is  no  possible  doubt.  And  at  the  outset 
stress  must  be  laid  on  the  fact  that  we  are 
dealing,  in  respect  of  the  two  civilisations 
in  question,  with  one  and  the  same  geo- 
graphical area.  There  is  here  no  question 
of  alien  influences  dependent  on  short  or 
290 


The  Greek 
Debt  to  /Egean 
Civilisation 


long  communications  by  sea  or  land.  The 
Hellenic  race,  if  indeed  to  be  distinguished 
from  all  elements  in  the  earlier  iEgean, 
came  into  the  very  domain  of  the  latter, 
and  experienced  by  actual  contact  the  full 
force  of  the  pre-existent  culture.  This  being 
so,  the  probability  of  heavy  debts  having 
been  contracted  by  the  later  culture  to  the 
earlier  is  enormous ;  and  it  becomes  all 
but  certainty  when  the  few  facts  which 
we  know  about  the  early  history  of  the 
Hellenic  peoples  proper  come  to  be  con- 
sidered in  the  light  of  ascertained  general 
laws  governing  the  relations  of  inter- 
mingled races. 

It  is  clear  that  the  Hellenic  tradition  of 
a  great  descent  of  peoples  from  the  north 
into  mainland  Greece  and  the  western 
isles,  about  1000  B.C.,  enshrines  substantial 
fact.  These  peoples,  possessed  of  iron 
weapons,  were  superior  to  the  ^Egean  folk 
in  war,  but  evidently  inferior  in  the  softer 
social  arts.  The  Greeks  called  them 
Dorians,  a  name  afterwards  associated 
with  the  most  distinctive,  but  the  least 
cultivated,  of  the  historic  races  of  the 
peninsula — a  race,  however,  possessed  in 
its  full  form  of  the  conception 
merging  ^^  ^j^^  city-state ;  which  im- 
u  ,,     .  plied  the  subordination  of  the 

Hellenism  •      t    •  i       i    ,        .1 

mdividual  to  the  corporate 
body,  and  was  the  chief  social  message  to 
be  taught  thereafter  by  the  Greek  to  the 
world. 

Without  calling  these  invaders  by  any 
one  name,  or  supposing  Northern  folk  to 
have  made  then  their  first  appearance  in 
the  ^gean  area,  we  may  safely  see  in  this 
Greek  tradition  the  record  of  a  cataclysmic 
change  out  of  which  historic  Hellenism  was 
to  issue  at  the  last.  In  proof  of  the  invader's 
inferiority  in  the  useful  arts  we  have  the 
undoubted  fact  that  the  command  of  the 
Greek  seas,  formerly  held  by  Cretans  and 
other  JEgesLTi  folk,  passed  for  some  cen- 
turies into  Semitic  hands — the  hands  of 
those  Sidonian  Phoenicians  whose  coming, 
but  as  yet  incomplete,  "  thalassocracy,"  is 
reflected  in  the  most  important  of  con- 
temporary documents,  the  Homeric  lays, 
and,  under  the  lead  of  the  Tyrians,  was  to 
grow  greater  yet.  To  illustrate  their 
inferiority  in  the  luxurious  arts  we  have 
the  dry,  uninventive  style  of  artistic 
decoration  known  as  the  "  Geometric," 
which  also  lasted  for  some  centuries.  It 
is  evident  that  the  newcomers  were  con- 
quering soldiers,  who  destroyed,  but  could 
not  of  their  own  virtue  create. 


2qi 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Now,  the  course  of  events  after  all 
such  conquests,  if  permanent  but  not 
exterminative,  is  the  same.  The  rude 
military  invaders,  finding  themselves  de- 
ficient in  woman-folk,  take  not  only  slaves 
but  wives  from  the  civilised  people  of  the 
soil.  The  resultant  children  tend  more  and 
more,  as  time  goes  on,  to  be  influenced 
by  their  native  mothers.  In  them  previous 
culture  begins  to  revive,  and  ere  many 
generations  are  past,  so  completely  is  the 
new  race  assimilated  by  the  old  that  the 
language  in  general  use  is  that  not  of 
the  conquerors  but  of  the  conquered. 

For  a  crucial  instance  we  need  look  no 
further  than  to  the  after  history  of  the 
Norman  invaders  of  Britain ;  and  we 
might  almost  assume,  were  there  no  actual 
memorials  of  the  fact,  that  the  civilisation 
which  arose  anew  in  the  ^gean  area,  after 
the  tumultuous  period  reflected  in  the 
Homeric  lays  and  the  Greek  tradition  of 
early  Asiatic  colonisation,  was  largely 
influenced  by  what  had  been  there  in  the 
^gean  Age.  There  is,  however,  proof  that 
such  was  indeed  the  fact.  As  will  presently 
be  pointed  out,  the  long  period  of  unrest  had 
allowed  other  alien  influences  to 
e  as  an  gj-j^gj-  HeUas,  notably  the  Sem- 
^  itic   from  Phoenicia.     But   be- 

side what  appears  to  be  Asiatic, 
and  also  beside  what  was  new  and  dis- 
tinctively Hellenic  in  the  historic  culture, 
which  became  prominent  from  the  ninth 
century  onwards  (and  this  includes  such 
all-important  features  as  the  conceptions 
of  a  supreme  Father-God,  and  of  the 
city-state — an  idea  of  social  order  as 
obdurate  to  southern  influences  as  our 
own  Germanic  social  order  has  proved) — 
beside  all  this,  the  "  non-Hellenic  "  ele- 
ments in  the  civilisation  are  almost 
entirely  such  as  may  be  referred  to  Algain 
I)rototypes.  Hellenic  art,  which  flourished 
j)re-eminently  among  the  non-Dorian  in- 
habitants, is  distinguished  from  Eastern 
art  by  just  those  distinctive  qualities  of 
both  realism  and  idealism  which  dis- 
tinguished the  highest  art  of  the  ^gean 
Age.  Hellenic  religion  has  for  its  oldest, 
most  universal,  and  most  popular  deities 
various  feminine  impersonations,  indistin- 
guishable from  the  earlier  Mother-Goddess. 
The  chief  of  these  is  the  unwcddcd  Artemis- 
Aphrodite,  su]neme  patroness  of  life 
all  through  the  historic  period  of  pagan 
Greece,  the  essential  features  of  whose 
cult  are  still  dominant  in  the  observance 
of  the  Greek  peasant -worshippers  of  the 

292 


Christian  Virgin.     Hellenic  cult  is  full  oi 

interesting  survivals  of  the  Tree  and  Stone 

ritual    amply    attested    in    ^gean    cult. 

Hellenic    custom    retained    many    traces 

of  a  matriarchal  system,   appropriate  to 

a  society  exclusively  devoted  to  the  Great 

Mother,  whom  Hellas  took  in  name  and 

actual   primitive    form   to   her    pantheon 

^  under  the  names  of  Rhea  and 

^.  ...  ^^.      Kybele.       The     Dorian      and 
Civilisation   t       •  j^    1  r  1.  .l      ^ 

.    Q  Ionian   styles    of    architecture 

can  be  directly  affiliated  to  the 
i5^gean  as  revealed  in  Mycentxan  tombs 
and  Cnossian  frescoes,  and  the  Greek 
house  is  a  development  of  the  earlier 
domestic  plan.  Certain  notable  excep- 
tions go  far  to  prove  the  rule.  The  dress 
of  the  upper  class,  and  the  fashion  of 
body-armour  and  weapons,  seem  to  have 
been  determined  henceforth  by  the 
new  folk.  These  are  just  the  features 
in  civilisation  which  conquering  invaders 
would  naturally  introduce  and  retain. 
It  is  hardly  necessary  to  add  that  if 
JEgesLU  civilisation  seriously  influenced 
that  of  historic  Hellas,  it  seriously 
influenced  at  second  hand  that  of  Western 
and  Central  Europe. 

Hellenic  civilisation,  however,  was  per- 
haps not  the  only  medium  through  which 
^gean  influence  affected  inner  Europe. 
In  Scandinavian  tomb-furniture  certain 
presumably  foreign  decorative  motives, 
notably  the  returning  spiral  and  the 
triqnetra,  which  are  identical  with  charac- 
teristic i^igean  types,  make  their  appear- 
ance in  the  first  part  of  the  local  Bronze 
Age  ;  and  these  have  been  noticed  also, 
at  a  slightly  later  period,  in  the  art  of 
early  Ireland,  at  that  time  the  most 
civilised  of  the  British  Isles.  In  point  of 
form  also  some  Northern  weapons  in 
bronze  resemble  those  of  the  Far  South. 
If  the  spiral  motive  stood  alone,  the 
affiliation  of  this  distant  decorative  art 
to  the  iEgean  would  be  very  doubtful, 
since  Nature,  whether  through  the  forms 

^  .      ^         assumed  by  vegetable  tendrils 
Other  ^gean  ■        i     i  ii  u 

,  ,,         **        or   animal    horns,  or  through 
Influences         , ,  r    t.       ■  r  j 

.     „  those  ot  shavings  ot  wood  or 

in    Europe  ■     .    ,  ...       ^  •,     , 

metal,  might  easily  have  sug- 
gested the  ornament  independently.  But 
taken  together  with  other  related  motives, 
and  the  evidence  of  assimilation  of  weapon- 
forms,  these  spirals  raise  a  ])resumption 
in  favour  of  an  early  obligation  of  North 
Europe  to  i^gean  civilisation.  A  ]:)Ossible 
explanation  of  this  fact,  if  fact  it  be,  has 
been   found  in  the  communication  which 


HISTORY     OF    THE     WORLD 


appears    to    have    been    created  by   the 

TEgean   demand   for   Baltic  amber  ;    and 

early   ways    for    this     traffic    have    been 

traced    by    Dr.    Arthur    Evans    up    the 

Adriatic,    and   also    overland     from     the 

iEgean    shores    to    the    Danube     basin, 

whence,    from    a    point    near   the    later 

Carnuntum,  a  combined  route  ran  up  the 

Moldau   to  the    Elbe  system.     Further,  it 

is    the    opinion    of    Professor    Montelius 

and  some    other   archaeologists    that    not 

only  certain  bronze  forms  and  decorative 

motives,    but    the    usage    of    this   metal 

itself    was   derived  in  Scandinavia   from 

the    south,    somewhere   before   looo   B.C. 

Since   pure   copper   and   pure   tin   hardly 

occur  in  Sweden  among  objects  of  this  age, 

it    has    been   held   that    the    bronze    was 

imported  ready  made  in  the  mass.     But 

Sweden    contains    large    natural    copper 

deposits,    and    tin    is    also    found ;     and, 

therefore,  this  opinion  is  not  universally 

accepted.    Indeed,  some  authorities  reverse 

the    debt,    and    actually    derive    iEgean 

knowledge    of  bronze   from    Europe.     If, 

however,    the    first     derivation   be    ever 

proved,  we    shall    have  to  refer  the  first 

_  .  ,       use    of  metal   weapons — an 

Commercial  ,  j-    ^  ,     . 

„  .    ,.      enormous   step    forward    m 

Communication         .    ,  ^         •        at      ;  i 

. ,  p  social   progress  —  m    North 

and  Central  Europe  to  the 
Southern  civilisations,  such  as  the  Egyp- 
tian, which  had  certainly  known  and  used 
bronze  for  at  least  a  thousand  years  before 
we  find  it  in  Sweden.  It  is  sometimes  main- 
tained that  Cyprus  was  the  first,  and  long 
the  sole,  source  of  copper,  which  travelled 
north  by  way  of  Asia  Minor  and  the  iEgean 
to  Hungary  and  inner  Europe  ;  but  this  is 
not  proved.  In  any  case,  for  some  reason, 
bronze  seems  to  have  become  known  to 
the  Scandinavians  and  Danes  earlier  than 
to  the  Gallic  peoples. 

Yet  more  evidence  is  there  of  possible 
iEgean  communication  with  Central 
Europe  after  the  introduction  of  iron, 
which  seems  not  to  have  reached  Scandi- 
navia till  almost  the  Christian  Era.  Tran- 
sylvanian,  Russian,  and  Balkan  graves 
have  yielded  to  recent  explorers  abund- 
ance of  both  weapons  and  decorated 
articles  of  personal  use  and  adornment, 
closely  resembling  fabrics  in  the  later 
periods  of  /Egean  civilisation.  Further  into 
the  European  continent  we  have  again  the 
various  evidence  of  the  early  Iron  Age 
graves  of  the  Salzkammergut  on  the  south- 
eastern fringe  of  the  Bavarian  plain.  This 
"  Hallstatt  "   culture,  as  it  is  called,  from 

294 


in  Western 
Europe 


the  location  of  the  chief  cemetery,  presents 

both   in   character    and   development   an 

extraordinarily  close  parallel  to  that  of  the 

iEgean  Geometric  Age.     About  the  same 

period  we  know  also  that  a  civilisation  was 

in  progress  in  the  fertile  lands  round  the 

head    of    the    Adriatic,    which    is    called 

Veneto-Illyrian,  and  shows  even  stronger 

,  „  evidence    of    ^Egean    influence 

Influences      ,,  ,,       tt    v   ^    j_^        i^ 

than  the  Hallstatt  culture ;  as, 

indeed,  might  be  expected,  if 
it  be  remembered  that  in 
Southern  and  Central  Italy,  as  well  as 
Sicily,  forms  and  decoration,  obviously 
learned  from  ^Egean  civilisation,  as  well  as 
actual  imported  ^Egean  objects,  had  been 
plentiful  ever  since  the  bloom  of  the 
iEgean  age.  A  visit  to  the  local  collections 
in  Syracuse,  Bari,  and  Ancona,  will  estab- 
lish this  fact  to  the  satisfaction  of  any 
archaeologist.  These  two  civilisations,  that 
of  the  Salzkammergut  and  that  of  the 
North  Adriatic  lands,  have  important  bear- 
ing on  the  development  of  all  Western 
Europe ;  for  we  know  that  the  Celtic 
peoples,  who  penetrated  south  of  the 
Alps  in  the  sixth  and  fifth  centuries 
B.C.,  learned  much  from  both,  and  espe- 
cially from  the  second  ;  and  graves,  fur- 
nished after  they  had  been  pressed  back 
again  into  Switzerland  and  Gaul,  show 
abundant  evidence  of  what  is  called  "  sub- 
^gean  "  influence — that  is,  of  form  and 
ornament  probably  derived  ultimately  from 
iEgean  culture,  but  indirectly,  or  after 
undergoing  considerable  degradation. 
Through  various  subsequent  interme- 
diaries, notably  the  Belgic  tribes,  these 
derivatives  passed  ultimately  to  our  own 
islands,  and  we  find  their  influence  opera- 
tive on  early  English  art. 

At  the  same  time  it  is  necessary  to  add 
that  this  derivation  of  the  higher  develop- 
ments of  mid-European  and  Scandinavian 
culture  in  the  Bronze  and  Early  Iron  ages 
from  the  influence  of  iEgean  civilisation  is 
far  from  certain,  whatever  be  the  case  for 
the  Adriatic  lands.  Know- 
ledge obtained  since  Dr. 
Evans  and  Dr.  Montelius 
first  expressed  their  views, 
especially  in  regard  to  the  so-called  Neo- 
lithic or  "  Butmir  "  pottery,  which  has  a 
very  wide  range  in  South-Eastern  Central 
Europe,  has  not  strengthened  their  case, 
but  rather  tended  to  suggest  that  the  con- 
tinental culture  developed  independently 
to,  though  in  a  parallel  direction  with,  that 
of  the  southern  peninsulas  and  isles.      If 


Civilisations 

Help 

One  Another 


THE    RISE    OF    CIVILISATION    IN    EUROPE 


this  view  ultimately  prevail,  it  will  illustrate 
the  opinion,  to  which  we  personally  incline, 
that  the  derivation  of  civilisations,  one 
from  another  in  early  times,  is  the  exception 
and  not  the  rule,  except  in  respect  of  minor 
matters. 

Two  other  intermediary  civilisations  of 
the  South-east  remain  to  be  considered — 
the  Hittite  and  the  Phoenician.  The 
first  is  still,  unfortunately,  very  little 
known  to  us,  and  we  are  hardly  in  a  posi- 
tion to  say  much  about  its  influence 
on  Europe  until  more  small  objects  of 
use  and  ornament  have  been  discovered 
on  Hittite  sites.  The  general  facts  so  far 
ascertained,  which  make  such  influence 
probable,  are  these.  This  civilisation, 
characterised  and  distinguished  from  all 
others  by  a  very  individual  art,  and  by  a 
system  of  writing  apparently  independent 
of  the  Mesopotamian  and  Egyptian  sys- 
tems, but  in  its  later  development  show- 
ing kinship  to  Mediterranean  systems,  lay 
across  all  the  mainland  routes  from  inner 
Asia  and  Egypt  to  South-eastern  Europe. 
Its  monuments  have  been  found  scattered 
thickly  from  the  valley  of  the  Syrian 
_,.   ...  Orontes  northwards,  to  within 

mtml^°'"°'''-^5°  miles  of  the  Black  Sea,  and 
^!  ...  ,.  westward  to  the  last  passes 
Civilisation       i  •   i        ,       ,       i  r  ^i 

which     lead    down    trom    the 

Anatolian  plateau  to  the  ^Egean  littoral. 
So  far  as  we  can  judge  at  present,  its  place 
of  origin  was  Cappadocia,  but  its  later 
focus  was  possibly  in  North  Syria  ;  while 
its  period  of  florescence  ranges  back  from 
about  the  sixth  century  B.C.  for  at  least 
a  thousand  years. 

It  was,  as  we  know  from  many  writ- 
ten records,  in  frequent  collision  with 
both  Egypt  and  Assyria,  and  in  its 
southern  home  and  latest  period  came 
under  Mesopotamian  domination.  As  is 
to  be  expected,  therefore,  its  monuments 
show  very  strong  Mesopotamian,  and  less 
strong  Egyptian,  influence.  At  the  last, 
indeed,  those  of  North  Syria  approximate 
very  closely  indeed  to  the  contemporary 
Assyrian  of  the  Sargonid  Age.  At  the 
same  time,  however,  they  retain  sufficient 
individuality  never  to  be  mistaken  for 
other  than  Hittite  ;  they  represent  facial 
types,  dress,  and  fashion  of  arms  which 
are  peculiar ;  and  the  inscriptions  they 
bear  are  always  couched  in  a  script 
having   no  relation  to  cuneiform  writing. 

This  vigorous  civilisation,  occupying  the 
great  land  bridge  from  Asia  into  Europe 
in  the  dawn  of  the  historic  Hellenic  period. 


and  eminently  receptive  of  Mesopotamian 

influences,     cannot     but     have     been     a 

medium  through  which  these  reached  the 

iEgean  Sea,  and  so  told  on  Europe.     But 

this  did  not  take  place  to  any  appreciable 

extent  in  what  is  known  as  the  prehistoric 

period.     The  Cretan  products,  and  those 

of  the  other  ^gean   Isles  and  mainland 

Greece,  betray  very  little  Meso- 

"f'^f...      potamian  influence,   and  none 

and  Hittite     li      ,  ui      ^  a 

,  „  that  we  can  reasonably  trace  to 

Influence        .,        TTi^  .l  c     r  _ 

the  Hittites.     So  far  as  we  can 

see,  the  ^Egean  culture  was  much  more 
ancient  than  the  Hittite,  and  if  there  was 
kinship  between  them  we  are  bound,  on 
the  evidence,  to  derive  the  latter  from  the 
former,  and  not  vice  versa.  There  is  a 
certain  relation  between  late  iEgean  art 
and  products  of  inland  Asia  Minor,  but  it 
indicates  influence  passing  eastward  rather 
than  westward  ;  and  even  on  the  remoter 
iEgean  sites  of  Asia  Minor — Hissarlik,  for 
instance — non-iEgean  traces  are  but  shght, 
and  do  not  suggest  the  influence  of 
a  strong  civilisation  focused  inland. 

In  the  early  Hellenic  Age,  on  the  other 
hand,  we  have  to  note  considerable  Mesopo- 
tamian influence  on  Greek  culture,  and,  at 
the  same  time,  certain  evidence  of  counter 
influence,  both  sub-/Egean  and  Graeco- 
Lydian,  on  Mesopotamia,  which  is  as  yet 
not  fully  understood.  But  whether  both  or 
either  of  these  respective  influences  were 
transmitted  through  the  Hittite  civilisation 
is  still  very  doubtful.  The  Egyptian 
influence  on  archaic  Anatolia,  especially 
on  Rhodes,  and  even  on  the  Greek  main- 
land, seems  clearly  to  have  come  by  way 
of  the  sea ;  and  considering  the  part 
which  the  Phoenicians  had  been  playing 
for  some  time  previously  as  transmitters 
of  things  eastern,  there  is  a  probable  alter- 
native westward  route  for  Mesopotamian 
influence  also.  In  Cyprus,  at  any  rate,  this 
influence,  which  at  a  certain  period  has  left 
strong  traces,  certainly  came  for  the  most 
part  through  the  western  Semites.  The 
.  claim  of  the  Hittites,  however, 
The  Hittite  -^  ^^^  ^^  ^^  denied  altogether. 
Pathway  of    t-,     •  ■     ,  i       i  x    ji 

_.  ...  '  Iheirscript  seems  undoubtedly 
Civilisation    ,      ,  i  ,,  4.     (  ju 

to  have  been  the  parent  01  Ine 

Lycian  and  other  local  Anatolian  systems. 
Phrygian  art  and  writing  attest  Graeco- 
Lydian  influence  inland ;  Ionian  culture 
was  certainly  not  unaffected  by  the  Lydian 
in  which  many  students  recognise  a  western 
offshoot  of  the  Hittite  ;  and  there  are  a 
few  features  in  Ionian  cult  and  in  cult 
representations  which  seem    to  be  owed 

295 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


rather  to  the  rehgious  system  of  the 
central  plateau  than  to  that  native  to 
the  iEgean  area.  In  this  state  of  sus- 
pense we  must  leave  the  question,  adding 
only  these  final  remarks,  that  Greek  tra- 
dition itself  ascribed  some  of  the  arts  and 
luxuries  of  its  civilisation — for  example, 
the  coining  of  money — to  Lydian  inven- 
P  t  PI  A  *^°"'  ^'^^  ^^^  affiliated  to  Lydia 
b  [h  *^^  ^  whole  western  culture,  that 
p^  .  .  of  Etruria  ;  while  it  is  an  un° 
doubted  fact  that  a  Mesopo- 
tamian  standard  of  weight-currency 
travelled  to  the  ^gean,  and  thence 
affected  all  western  commerce,  but  by  what 
channel  we  do  not  certainly  know.  There  is 
an  unknown  quantity  in  all  this  problem — 
viz.,  Lydia.  We  have  reason  to  suspect  the 
latter  of  a  considerable  influence  on  early 
Hellenic  civilisation,  both  as  creator  and 
transmitter,  but  must  await  further  evidence. 

The  part  played  by  the  Phoenicians  in 
transmitting  influences  of  civilisation  from 
East  to  West  is  far  more  certain,  and  is 
now  much  better  understood  than  it  was 
a  few  years  ago.  Much  vague  exaggera- 
tion of  it  has  been  swept  away  by  recent 
demonstration  that  there  is  practically 
nothing  of  probable  Phoenician  origin  in 
the  remains  of  the  /Egean  culture.  The 
script  of  the  latter  is  wholly  independent  ; 
the  typical  Phoenician  vehicles  of  glyptic 
art,  the  cylinder  and  the  scarab,  were  never 
naturalised  in  the  early  ^Egean  ;  the  whole 
path  of  the  latter's  artistic  development 
was  distinct ;  and  the  ^gean  religious 
representations,  once  regarded  as  Semitic, 
are  now  seen  to  be  native.  On  the  other 
hand,  decadent  and  derived  ^gean  forms 
and  motives  appear  among  the  earliest 
Phoenician  known  to  us.  Influence, 
if  it  jxassed  at  all,  between  the  ^gcan 
and  the  Syrian  coast  lands,  in  the  pre- 
historic  age,   moved   from   west   to   east. 

In  short,  we  now  know  that  the  Phoe- 
nicians did  not  begin  to  spread  over  the 
western  sea  and  influence  Europe  till 
Ori  in  of  *'^^  break  up  of  the  i^gean 
rigin  o        civilisation.    The  Homeric  lavs 

OurWntten  i  tt    n       •  ^\  n      a   J 

,  and  Hellenic  myths  reflect  the 

Language  .  c  c        ■  ^■ 

mception  of  a  Semitic  ex- 
pansion, which  must  be  placed  after 
iioo  B.C.  Even  in  Homer  there  is  more 
mention  of  Greek  ships  than  of  Sidonian, 
and  the  Tyrian  ])o\vcr  is  yet  to  come. 
The  latter  pushed  westward  later,  and 
the  founding  of  Carthage,  usually  dated 
in  the  eighth  century,  marks  its  first 
great  achievement  along  those  distant 
296 


sea-routes,  which  certainly  the  Semites 
had  been  coming  to  know  during  a  couple 
of  centuries  of  huckstering  trade,  even  if 
the  dependence  of  the  early  Hellenes  on 
Phoenician  knowledge  of  these  waters  has 
been  overrated.  But,  in  any  case,  during 
the  interval  between  the  fall  of  ^Egean 
power  and  the  rise  of  the  Hellenic  maritime 
cities  these  Semites  counted  for  much. 
Even  in  the  light  of  Cretan  discovery,  we 
need  not  question  their  responsibility  for 
the  Greek  alphabet,  and  thus,  indirectly, 
for  the  ultimate  medium  of  written  com- 
munication used  throughout  European 
civilisation  ;  nor  need  it  be  doubted  that 
Hellenic  writers,  who  trace  early  instruction 
in  trade  and  barter  to  visits  of  Semitic  ships 
to  their  coasts,  show  real,  though  limited, 
knowledge  of  fact.  Phoenician  factories 
were  certainly  established  on  Greek  shores, 
and  left  Semitic  forms  among  later  Greek 
place-names ;  and  it  is  quite  possible 
that  political  power  was  exercised  at  one 
time  by  Semitic  colonists  in  parts  of 
Hellas.  Sufficient  Phoenician  art  products 
have  been  found  on  archaic  Hellenic  sites, 
to  prove  that,  in  the  period  between  1000 
and  500  B.C.,  the  iEgean  coasts 
^!"*  "^    .    were    often    visited    by    these 

n  "^'*"  ^"^  Semites.  Such  objects  are  espe- 
Greek  Art        •    „  •       y,,      j     ^ 

cially  numerous  m  Rhodes,  a 

convenient  stage  on  the  westward  sea  route, 
and  they  radiate  over  not  only  Ionia  and 
the  Hellenic  lands,  but  also  into  the  further 
Mediterranean,  to  Sicily  and  its  neigh- 
bouring islands,  to  Italy  and  South  Gaul, 
and  to  Sardinia  and  Spain.  Carthage 
probably  had  much  to  say  in  their 
western     distribution. 

Of  Semitic  influence  on  archaic  Greek 
art  there  is  considerable  evidence.  After 
the  Geometric  Age,  we  find  in  the  Greek 
lands  pottery  and  metal-work  showing  cer- 
tain motives  and  arrangement  of  decora- 
tion foreign  to  iEgean  art,  and  referable 
ultimately  to  the  Mesopotamian  and 
Egyptian.  Such  are  the  animals  and 
monsters  disposed  in  concentric  friezes 
and  zones  on  Cypriote  bowls,  Corin- 
thian vases,  and  the  Cretan  shields  of 
the  Idaean  Cave.  But  this  influence, 
strong  and  undoubted  as  it  was,  must 
not  be  over  estimated.  As  the  Hellenes 
rose  to  power,  their  instinct  of  sincerity 
and  naturalism,  inherited  from  ^gean 
civilisation,  revolted  against,  and 
triumphed  over,  this  parasitic  Semitic 
art,  and  already  in  the  ninth  or  eighth 
century  we  find  a  Gr?eco-Lydian  influence, 


297 


History  of   the  world 


which  owes  nothing  to  Phoenician,  break- 
ing back  to  the  east  and  creating  the 
ivories  of  the  Sargonid  Age  at  Nineveh. 
Phoenician  objects  thenceforward  become 
fewer  and  fewer  in  Hellenic  strata,  and 
in  the  sixth  century  B.C.  they  virtuahy 
vanish.  By  this  time  Phoenicia  had  be- 
come a  subject  country,  about  to  give  up 
the  last  ghost  of  its  indepen- 
dence    to    the   Greeks  them- 


No  Phoenician 
Influence 
in  Britain 


selves,  as  its  western  offshoot, 
Carthage,  was  also  to  surrender 
a  little  later  to  another  civilisation  near  akin 
to  the  Greek.  But,  needless  to  say,  the 
Semite  has  had  his  full  revenge  for  the 
short  tenure  of  his  earliest  predominance 
in  European  waters.  The  fall  of  Phoenicia 
cleared  the  way  for  another  Semitic  family 
to  capture  international  trade,  and,  first 
with  one  creed  and  then  another,  to  conquer 
the  Greeks,  the  Romans,  and  the  World. 

There  are,  of  course,  possibilities  of 
direct  Phoenician  intercourse  with  non- 
Mediterranean  Europe — for  example,  with 
England's  south-western  coasts  ;  but  they 
need  not  detain  us.  For  whether  certain 
Semites  came  to  Cornwall  in  quest  of  tin 
or  no,  it  is  certain  that  by  these  no 
lasting  influence  of  civilisation  passed  in 
to  England.  Neither  the  religion,  the 
speech,  nor  the  script  of  Britain  owed 
them  anything.  Recent  scholarship  tends 
to  discredit  any  Semitic  element  even  in 
English  south-western  place-names. 

Such,  in  brief  outline,  are  the  channels 
through  which  the  civilisations  of  the 
South-eastern  river- valleys  could  communi- 
cate with  primitive  Europe.  It  is  easier  to 
l)oint  them  out  than  to  say  exactly  what 
flowed  along  them.  Seldom  can  so  definite 
a  debt  be  recorded  as  that  under  which 
wc  lie  to  the  Semites  of  Phoenicia,  for  the 
names  and  the  forms  of  the  written 
characters  which,  presumably,  they  them- 
Th  o  ■  •  selves  had  borrowed  from 
^  c^  ngms    £gyp|.^  ^j^^  modified  ere  they 

Civilisations  P^''^^^  them  westwards. 
Usually  the  obligation  must  be 
stated  much  more  vaguely,  being  confined, 
as  in  the  case  of  ^Egean  influences,  to  little 
more  than  a  general  responsibility  for 
the  spirit,  and  for  many  forms  of  the  ex- 
pression, of  the  first  great  artistic  growth 
on  the  mainland  soil  of  Europe,  as  well  as 
for  certain  persistent  and  dynamic  features 
in  South  Euiopean  cults. 


Thus,  it  becomes  even  more  apparent 
at  the  end  of  our  discussion  than  it  was 
at  the  beginning  that  when  all  has  been 
said  about  influences  of  Egypt  and 
Mesopotamia,  and  influences  of  the  inter- 
mediate civilisations  of  the  ^Egean,  Syria, 
and  Asia  Minor,  only  a  very  small  part  of 
the  whole  story  of  incipient  European 
civilisation  has  been  told.  Nor  is  it  to  be 
expected  that  the  origin  of  our  culture 
should  be  capable  of  being  adequately 
expressed  in  terms  of  other  cultures, 
developed  at  a  great  distance  and  under 
different  geographical  conditions.  Civilisa- 
tions, destined  to  be  living  growths,  spring, 
it  seems,  of  themselves,  and  the  debts  which 
they  can  incur  at  the  first  are  very  small 
and  mostly  in  small  things.  It  is  only  when 
they  are  come  to  adult  estate,  have  bred 
men  of  wealth  and  leisure  with  open 
and  receptive  minds,  and  have  broken 
through  the  geographical  barriers  about 
them,  that  they  begin  to  borrow  at 
large. 

One    of    the    intermediate    civilisations 

of    which    we  have   treated,  the  iEgean, 

the  only  one  whose  own  origins  are  fairly 

well    known,    offers    proof   in  point.     Its 

remains    indicate     but    trifling 

J*. ..  f.      ,     obligations      to     neighbouring 
Childhood  '^  °  - 


of  Europe 


Egypt  till  a  very  late  period, 
that  which,  in  Crete,  we  call  the 
Third  Minoan.  Thereafter,  in  the  space 
of  two  or  three  generations,  the 
evidence  of  its  debt  increases  at  a 
wholly  disproportionate  rate.  So  too, 
no  doubt,  in  the  misty  period  of  the  child- 
hood of  Central  and  Western  Europe, 
little  was  borrowed  from  abroad  that  was 
essential  to  civilisation  ;  and  the  heavy 
obligations  which  we  owe  to  the  Eastern 
lands  fall  in  ages  much  more  recent. 
They  fall,  in  fact,  in  those  times  which 
saw  the  Anatolian  cult  of  Kybele  and 
Attis,  the  Egyptian  cult  of  Isis  and  Horus- 
Harpocrates,  the  Mesopotamian  cult  of 
Mithra,  and,  far  more  momentous,  of 
course,  than  these,  Christianity — Hebrew 
in  origin  if  modified  by  Greek  concep- 
tions— brought  by  a  greater  intermediary 
civilisation  than  any  with  which  we  have 
had  to  deal,  to  the  knowledge  of  inner 
European  races  already  long  emerged 
from  savagery,  and  able  and  eager  to 
borrow. 

David  George  Hogarth 


298 


THE  TRIUMPH  OF  RACE 

WHY      ONE     NATION      CONQUERS     ANOTHER 
BY     DR.     G.    ARCHDALL     REID 


C 


IT  is  a  familiar  fact  that  offspring 
resemble  their  parents  on  the  whole, 
but  differ  from  them  in  details.  For 
example,  the  child  of  a  human  being  is 
always  another,  but  never  an  exactly 
similar,  human  being. 

These  differences  in  detail  are  of  two 
sorts,  inboyn  and  acquired.  Inborn  or 
innate  differences  arise  "  by  nature  "  ; 
the  child  is  inherently  unlike  the  parent — 
taller  or  shorter,  fairer  or  darker,  and  so 
forth.  Acquired  differences,  on  the  other 
hand,  are  due  to  the  conditions  under 
which  parents  and  children  have  lived. 
Thus,  owing  to  better  or  worse  surround- 
ings, the  child  may  develop  better  or 
worse  than  the  parent  and  so  be  taller  or 
shorter,  or  a  greater  exposure  to  weather 
may  render  him  darker  or  fairer. 

It  was  formerly  believed  by  scientific 

men,  and  is  still  believed  by  the  public, 

that     traits     acquired     by      the     parent 

tended  to  be  inherited  by  the 

^XT^^J^       .  child — that    is,  reproduced    as 
Wc  Cannot        ,  ,      •,        Vi,        -J. 

J  .     .  mborn  traits.    1  hus  it  was  sup- 

posed that  if  a  man  were  made 
strong  by  exercise,  or  injured  by  accident, 
his  child  would  tend  to  inherit,  in  some 
degree  at  least,  the  acquired  benefit  or 
injury,  and  as  a  result  be  naturally  stronger 
or  more  defective  than  the  parent  was  at 
the  start. 

But  very  prolonged  and  careful  investi- 
gation has  proved  that  this  is  certainly  an 
error.  For  example,  though  for  aeons 
human  beings  have  been  learning  to  speak 
and  walk,  and  make  a  multitude  of  other 
acquirements,  yet  none  of  these  are  ever 
inherited.  In  fact,  owing  to  the  evolution 
of  memory  and  the  retrogression  of 
instinct,  man,  of  all  animals,  acquires  the 
most  and  inherits  the  least.  Every  child 
has  to  begin  afresh  and  learn  what  its 
ancestors  learnt  ;  all  are  born  ignorant  ; 
none  speak  or  walk  "  naturally."  Each 
starts  where  the  parent  began,  not  where 
he  left  off.  The  parental  traits,  if  repro- 
duced at  all,  are  always  of  the  same  kind  in 
the  child  as  in  the  parents,  and  appear  in 


the  same  way.  That  is,  the  inborn  traits 
of  the  parent  are  always  inborn  in  the 
offspring  ;  the  acquired  traits  are  never 
anything  but  acquirements  resulting 
from  the  same  causes  as  they  did  in  the 
parent.  In  brief,  the  acquirements  of 
the  parent  are  never  transmuted  into 
inborn    characteristics    in    the 


child.  They  are  never  inherited. 
It   is   admitted    on    all  hands 


Acquired 
Traits  not 

^  that  inborn  differences — varia- 
tions, as  they  are  termed  technically — 
tend  to  be  inherited. 

Thus,  if  the  parent  is  naturally  darker 
than  the  grandparent,  the  child  tends  in 
colour  to  resemble  the  former  more  than 
the  latter.  Since  the  child  may  vary  from 
the  parent  in  the  same  direction  as  the 
latter  varied  from  the  grandparent,  these 
inborn  differences  may  be  accentuated  in 
subsequent  generations.  It  is  due  to  this 
fact  that  plant  and  animal  breeders  have 
improved  domesticated  species..  They 
are  able  to  benefit  the  individual  by 
improving  his  surroundings,  but  the  race 
they  can  improve  only  by  breeding  from 
the  best.  In  other  words,  when  they 
have  the  latter  end  in  view,  they  must 
build  on  natural  variations,  not  on 
acquirements. 

One  of  the  most  important  problems  in 

the  whole  range  of  science  is  the  question 

as  to  what  causes  offspring  to  differ  in  this 

inborn,  natural  way  from   their  parents. 

Many    theories    have     been    formulated, 

and  the   subject  is   still   to   some  extent 

under    discussion ;    but    the  evidence    is 

overwhelming     that     variations — natural 

,     _      ^      differences — are  not  generally 
A    Great  j  ,  ^     t     ^■       -^ 

Probl  caused,  as  most  people  believe, 

oi\i^Z,ce  ^y  anything  that  happens  to  the 
parent  before  the  birth  of  the 
child,  but  are  "  spontaneous."  The  sub- 
ject is  a  large  and  intricate  one,  and  we 
have  not  space  to  discuss  it  at  length.  One 
or  two  facts,  however,  may  be  mentioned. 
The  members  of  a  litter  of  puppies, 
kittens,  or  pigs,  may  differ  naturally 
amongst  themselves  and  from  their  parents 

299 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


in  all  sorts  of  ways — in  colour,  shape,  size, 
hairiness,  disposition,  and  so  on.  One 
puppy  may  present  points  of  resemblance 
to  the  father,  another  to  the  mother,  a 
third  to  some  ancestor,  while  a  fourth  may 
be  unlike  any  of  its  predecessors.  Since, 
practically  speaking,  the  puppies  were  all 
conditioned  alike  before  birth,  it  is  evident 
_.„  that    these    great    differences 

amor*"*'"  "^"^^  ^^  "  spontaneous."  They 
K™°H^  A  caimot  have  been  caused  by 
such  things  as  the  good  or  ill 
health  of  the  parents,  their  food,  or  the 
hfe  they  led,  for,  in  that  case,  the  puppies 
would  all  have  varied  in  the  same  way. 

Again,  malaria  is,  in  effect,  a  universal 
disease  on  the  West  Coast  of  Africa. 
Individuals  differ  naturally  in  their  powers 
of  resisting  it,  some  taking  it  lightly  and 
some  severely ;  but  almost  every  negro 
suffers,  and  many  children  perish  of  it.  If 
the  sufferings  of  the  parents  caused  children 
to  be  born  weaker  "  by  nature,"  it  is 
evident  that  every  individual  would  start 
life  inferior  to  his  predecessor  at  the 
start,  and  the  race  would  thus  degenerate 
and  ultimately  become  extinct.  On  the 
other  hand,  if  variations  are  "  spon- 
taneous," if,  quite  unaffected  by  the 
sufferings  of  the  parents,  some  children  are 
born  naturally  different,  naturally  more  or 
less  resistant  to  malaria  than  their  pre- 
decessors, it  is  plain  that  the  weeding  out 
of  the  unfittest,  the  weak  against  the 
disease,  would  ultimately  make  the  race 
resistant  to  it.  In  the  one  case  the  race 
would  drift  to  destruction  ;  in  the  other 
it  would  undergo  protective  evolution. 
Obviously,  the  latter  is  what  has  happened. 
Negroes  show  no  signs  of  any  kind  of 
degeneration,  but  they  are  of  all  races  the 
most  resistant  to  malaria. 

Similarly,  Enghshmen  who  have  been 
much  exposed  to  consumption  and  measles, 
natives  of  India  who  have  been  much 
afflicted  by  enteric  fever  and  dysen- 
tery, Esquimaux  who  have  suffered  from 
.  cold,  Arabs  who  have  endured 

u  cring      jieat.  Chinamen  and  Jews  who 

Stren"t"  ^'^^^  ^^'^^  dwelt  under  that 
complex  of  ill  conditions  found 
in  slums  and  ghettos,  are  none  of  them 
degenerate,  but,  on  the  contrary,  have 
become  resistant,  each  race  to  its  own  par- 
ticular ill-conditions  in  proportion  to  its 
sufferings  in  the  past.  In  fact,  it  may  be 
laid  down  as  a  general  rule  that  races 
strengthen  only  when  exposed  to  ill  con- 
ditions, and  deteriorate  only  when  the 
300 


conditions  are  so  favourable  that  the  unfit 
are  not  eliminated.  An  example  of  the 
latter  is  seen  when  prize  breeds  of  animals 
and  plants,  however  well  nourished  and 
cared  for,  are  no  longer  bred  with  care. 
It  follows  that  races,  if  not  exterminated, 
are  not  injured  but  strengthened  by  ill 
conditions,  by  the  elimination  of  the  un- 
fittest, as  gold  is  refined  by  fire. 

It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  many  people 
are  able  to  accomplish  the  surprising  feat 
of  knowing  that  races  have  become  inured 
to  ill  conditions,  and  of  believing  at  the 
same  time  that  the  offspring  of  people 
exposed  to  such  conditions  tend,  as  a  rule, 
to  be  degenerate.  It  is  as  if  they  believed 
that  two  and  two  make  four,  and  two 
more  six,  but  that  if  a  great  number  of 
two's  are  added  together  the  total  result 
is  a  minus  quantity.  Obviously  the  two 
beliefs  are  incompatible.  A  race  cannot 
degenerate  in  every  generation  and  yet 
emerge  in  the  end  strengthened  from  the 
struggle.  The  confusion  has  arisen  because 
the  two  diametrically  opposite  propo- 
sitions are  seldom  considered  together,  and 
in  part  also  from  a  mistaken  interpretation 
of  what  is  observed  in  such 
situations  as  the  slums  of  cities. 
Here  puny  children  are  seen  to 
be  derived  from  puny  parents, 
and  it  is  assumed  that  the  children  are 
degenerate  because  the  parents  have 
suffered. 

As  a  fact  we  have  no  reason  to  doubt  that 
Ihe  children  are  affected  in  precisely  the 
same  way  as  the  parents.  On  the  one  hand, 
slums  are  sinks  into  which  descend  people 
naturally  inferior,  people  who  have  varied 
spontaneously  from  their  ancestors  in  such 
a  way  as  to  "be  feeble,  physically  or  men- 
tally, and  who  reproduce  their  like.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  conditions  are  such  that 
even  the  naturally  strong,  both  parents  and 
children,  develop  badly.  Doubtless,  owing 
to  the  constant  elimination  of  the  unfit, 
the  latter — the  naturally  strong— are  by 
far  the  more  numerous.  There  is  nothing 
to  show  that,  if  they  were  removed  in  early 
life  to  better  surroundings,  they  would  not 
develop  just  as  well  as  the  offspring  of 
country  folk. 

The  fact  that  races  grow  resistant  to  the 
ill  conditions  to  which  they  are  exposed, 
and  degenerate  when  placed  under  par- 
ticularly good  conditions,  is  decisive  proof 
that  offspring  are  not,  as  a  rule,  innately 
affected  by  the  surroundings  of  their 
parents.     No  doubt  exceptions  occur,  but 


Survival 
of  the 
Fittest 


THE    TRIUMPH    OF    RACE 


these  are  amongst  the  most  unfit,  and  the 
race  is  soon  purged  of  them.  Thus  Euro- 
pean dogs  are  said  to  degenerate  when 
taken  to  India.  But  the  existence  of  old- 
estabhshed  native  races  of  dogs  is 
proof  that  the  degenerative  process  is  not 
perpetual.  Malaria  and  many  other  ill 
conditions  are  quite  normal  parts  of  the 
environment  of  the  races  ex- 

„         .   so    for    thousands    of    years. 
now  Ceased    t-  ,       r  •        i 

bxcept  for  occasional  un- 
favourable variations,  which  are  quickly 
eliminated,  they  have  long  purged 
the  races  of  those  strains  that  tended 
to  become  degenerate  under  their 
influence. 

After  man — through  the  evolution  of 
the  structures  and  faculties  which  distin- 
guish him  from  the  lower  animals,  the  large 
brain,  with  its  accompanying  memory, 
the  organs  of  speech,  the  hand,  the  erect 
attitude — had  achieved  the  conquest  of 
the  earth,  his  selection  and  evolution  along 
the  ancestral  lines  gradually  diminished, 
and  has  now  almost  ceased.  At  the  pre- 
sent day  clever,  strong,  or  active  people 
do  not  on  the  average  have  an  appreciably 
more  numerous  progeny  than  those  who 
are  not  exceptionally  endowed.  No  modern 
race  is  intellectually  superior  to  the  Greeks 
who  flourished  more  than  two  thousand 
years  ago.  The  brains,  the  hands,  the 
organs  of  speech,  the  erect  attitude, 
have  not  altered.  Apparently  nothing 
more  than  traditional  knowledge  has 
improved. 

The  gradual  accumulation  of  traditional 
knowledge    during    prehistoric    times  en- 


abled man  to  cultivate  animals  and  plants, 
and  so  to  increase  and  regulate  his  supply 
of  food.  As  a  consequence  his  numbers 
multiplied.  Areas  of  country  which  for- 
merly supported  only  a  few  wandering  hun- 
ters now  afforded  sustenance  to  growing 
multitudes  of  agriculturists,  who  often 
dwelt  together  for  mutual  protection 
in  villages.  Commerce  followed  agricul- 
ture, towns  and  cities  arose,  and  civflisa- 
tion  dawned. 

Civilisation  implies  a  dense  and  settled 
community,  protected  from  most .  of  the 
dangers  which  beset  wild  animals,  and  in 
which,  therefore,  the  elimination  of  the 
unfit  is  no  longer  of  the  kind  that  weeded 
out  the  brute  and  the  utter  savage.  Some 
sort  of  elimination  does  occur,  however, 
for,  even  in  the  most  civilised  states,  mul- 
titudes of  people  perish  in  youth,  before 
they  have  contributed  their  full  quota  of 
offspring  to  the  race. 

We  have  excellent  opportunities  of 
studying  this  elimination  and  noting 
whether  it  results  in  evolution.  Indeed, 
man  presents  the  only  instance  in 
Nature  in  which  we  are  able  to  observe 
natural  selection  actually  at 
work.  In  all  modern  states 
statistics  are  compiled  which 
set  out  the  causes  of  death,  the 
mortality  from  each  cause,  and  the  ages  of 
its  victims.  By  comparing  races  which  have 
been  much  afflicted  by  this  or  that  cause 
of  mortality  with  races  that  have  been  little 
or  not  at  all  affected,  we  are  able  to  ascer- 
tain the  resulting  racial  change,  if  any.  As 
may  be  noted  by  everyone,  civilised  people 
perish,  with  rare  exceptions,  of  disease. 


Natural 
Selection 
at  Work 


MANKIND'S    LONG    BATTLE    AGAINST    BACTERIA 


YV/E  have  just  seen  that  every  race  is 

^      resistant  to  every  disease  precisely 

in  proportion  to  its  past  experience  of  it. 

It  follows  that  the  evolution  of  civilised 

.  peoples  is  against  disease.     If 

Resistance  ^^^^^  j^j^^  ^^  evolution  is 

of  Races  •'  , 

_.  now  occurnng,  no  one  as  yet 

has  been  able  to  demonstrate 
it,  though  many  unproved  guesses  have 
been  made.  Mere  alterations  in  traditional 
knowledge  is  not  evolution.  Children  may 
derive  it  just  as  well  from  other  people 
as  from  their  parents. 

The  vast  majority  of  deaths  from  disease 
are  of  zymotic  origin.  A  zymotic  or 
microbic  disease  is  caused  by  the  entrance 
into  the  body  of  minute  animals  or  plants 


(microbes),  which  find  their  nutriment 
there.  There  are  many  species  of  microbes, 
each  disease  being  due  to  one.  Some 
species  are  mainly  air-borne,  and  infect 
through  the  breath ;  others  are  water- 
borne  ;  others  earth-borne  ;  yet  others 
insect-borne ;  while  a  few  pass  by  actual 
contact  from  an  infected  to  a  healthy 
person. 

Some  diseases — for  example,  consump- 
tion and  leprosy — are  of  indefinite  but 
always  prolonged  duration  ;  others,  like 
measles,  are  short  and  sharp.  In  the  case 
of  the  latter,  for  reasons  we  need  not  dwell 
on  here,  the  body  after  an  attack  becomes, 
for  a  longer  or  shorter  time,  an  unfit  habi- 
tation for  the  microbes  of  that  particular 

301 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


The  Way 
Disease 

is  Spread 

the  like- 


species.  The  rapid  recovery  which  occurs 
in  these  "  acute  "  diseases,  indeed,  imphes 
the  banishment  of  the  microbes.  The  air- 
borne diseases — measles,  influenza,  small- 
pox, and  the  like,  all  of  that  acute  type 
which  confers  immunity  against  subse- 
quent attacks — are  very  infective,  spread- 
ing through  a  susceptible  population  with 
great  rapidity.  Under  favour- 
able conditions  the  water- 
borne  diseases  also — cholera, 
dysentery,  enteric  fever,  and 
may  spread  very  quickly.  Chief 
amongst  the  earth-borne  diseases  is  con- 
sumption. It  is  contracted  chiefly  in  such 
dark,  ill-ventilated,  and  crowded  houses 
as  are  built  by  the  inhabitants  of  cold  and 
temperate  climates. 

The  disease-producing  microbes  are  an 
infinitesimal  proportion  of  the  total  num- 
ber of  bacterial  and  protozoan  species.  In 
Nature  it  is  not  easy  to  find  a  speck 
of  earth  or  a  drop  of  water  from  which 
these  minute  living  beings  are  absent. 
All  decay,  by  means  of  which  the 
dead  bodies  of  plants  and  animals  are 
returned  to  the  soil,  is  due  to  them. 

It  is  a  safe  assumption  that  the  microbes 
of  human  diseases  have  evolved  from  non- 
parasitic species.  The  niche  they  now 
occuj)y  in  Nature  is  the  human  body.  Two 
things  formed  essential  parts  of  this  evolu- 
tion— first,  the  microbes  became  capable  of 
existing  and  multiplymg  for  a  shorter  or 
longer  period  in  the  body  ;  secondly,  they 
evolved  means  of  passing  from  one  living 
body  to  another.  The  latter  must  have 
been  the  more  difficult  process.  Under 
favourable  circumstances  several  species 
of  microbes — for  example,  those  of  putre- 
faction, which  are  ordinarily  non-parasitic 
— are  capable  of  entering  the  human  body 
and  becoming  virulent  ;  but,  since  they 
cannot  secure  passage  from  one  individual 
to  another,  they  die  out,  and  their  viru- 
lence is  lost.  Historical  evidence  renders 
it  probable  that  all  known  human  diseases 

-,.    ,  are     of     immense     antiquity, 

The  Immense  .1  ,,    j  i-  -^ 

Anti  uit  so-called     new      diseases 

orDil^eaLs  ^^^"^^  merely  newly-observed 
diseases.  It  appears  probable, 
therefore,  that,  owing  to  constant  perse- 
cution by  disease,  by  continued  survival  of 
the  fittest,  humanity  has  grown  so  resistant 
that  no  species  of  microbe  which  has  not 
undergone  concurrent  evolution  is  now 
able  to  establish  itself  as  a  regular  parasite. 

Obviously,  since  the  microbes  of  human 
diseases  draw  their  nutritive  supplies  from 

302 


man,  they  cannot  persist  except  amongst 
populations  so  crowded  that  they  are  able 
to  pass  from  one  individual  to  another  in 
unending  succession.  When  the  succession 
fails,  the  disease  dies  out,  and  is  not 
renewed,  except  from  foreign  sources. 
Microbic  disease  is  never  contracted  in 
desert  places  far  from  human  settlements, 
and  even  in  modern  times  it  is  compara- 
tively rare  amongst  nomadic  tribes,  and, 
seemingly,  was  quite  unknown  in  Arctic 
regions  and  in  many  Pacific  islands  before 
its  introduction  by  Europeans.  These 
maladies,  therefore,  must  have  made  their 
appearance  only  after  men  had  peopled 
certain  regions  in  considerable  numbers, 

On  the  other  hand,  we  have  no  certain 
evidence  that  any  well-established  para- 
sitic disease  has  ever  completely  died  out. 
The  chances  are  all  against  such  an  occur- 
rence in  the  past.  When  once  established  as 
parasites,  the  microbes,  owing  to  the 
constant  growth  of  human  population, 
found  a  constantly  augmented  food  supply, 
and  therefore  constantly  increased  oppor- 
tunities of  reaching  fresh  fields  of  con- 
quest. Sanitary  science  is  still  in  its 
infancy.  Preventive  measures, 
and  perhaps  other  agencies, 
have  caused  the  disappear- 
ance of  leprosy  from  several 
countries,  but  it  is  still  prevalent  in  many 
quarters  of  the  globe.  Contagious  diseases 
have  spread  very  widely.  Earth  and  air 
borne  diseases  have  become  endemic 
instead  of  merely  epidemic.  Consumption 
is  always  with  us,  and  almost  every 
child  contracts  measles,  whooping-cough, 
chicken-pox,  and  common  cold.  Small-pox 
has  been  replaced  by  vaccination,  which  is 
merely  modified  small-pox.  Malaria  has 
spread  but  little  during  the  historic  epoch, 
but  only  because  its  microbes  were  already 
])resent  in  almost  every  place  where  the 
mosquitoes  that  convey  it  are  able  to  exist. 
All  our  information  indicates  the  Eastern 
Hemisphere  as  the  place  of  origin  both  of 
man  and  of  his  microbic  diseases.  Parts 
of  it  have  been  inhabited  by  a  dense 
and  settled  population  from  a  time  im- 
mensely remote.  "  Behind  dim  empires 
ghosts  of  dimmer  empires  loom."  Beyond 
the  traces  of  the  oldest  civilisations  we  find 
evidences  of  primitive  agricultural  com- 
munities, and  far  beyond  these  the  remains 
of  the  cave-men  and  hunters  of  the 
Stone  Age.  Even  a  race  of  hunters  tends 
to  increase  faster  than  the  food  supply. 
Doubtless   the   pressure   of  population  in 


Progress 
of  Sanitary 
Science 


THE    DAYS    OF    THE    PLAGUE    IN    LONDON 
Dr.  Archdall  Reid,  in   his  essay  on  race  supremacy,  explains  tliat  the  evolution  of  civilised  peoples  is  against  disease, 
and  that,  therefore,  the  age  of  pestilence  and  plague  is  passing.     This  picture  of  an  incident  in  the  greatest  plague 
that  has  affected  London    in  historical  times— in    the  year  1655 — is  from  the  painting-  by  F.    W,   Topham,  R.L 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


the  Old  World  led  to  the  colonisation  of  the 
New.  But  even  in  the  New  World  there  are 
signs  of  a  civilisation  so  ancient  that  some 
authorities  have  placed  its  beginnings  as  far 
back  as  a  score  or  more  of  thousands  of  years. 
With  the  exception  of  malaria,  it  is  extremely 
doubtful  whether  any  zymotic  disease  ex- 
isted in  the  whole  of  the  New  World  at 
the  time  of  its  discovery  by  Columbus. 

The  subject  is  involved  in  obscurity; 
but,  while  it  is  evident  that  the  European 
adventurers  introduced  many  diseases, 
there  is  no  clear  indication  that  they 
found  and  brought  back  one.  Appa- 
rently all  the  diseases  which  have  been 
prevalent  in  Europe  and  America  during 
the  last  four  hundred  years  were  preva- 
lent in  the  former  continent  before  the 
fifteenth  century.  Venereal  disease  and 
yellow  fever  have  sometimes  been  regarded 
as  exceptions.  But  the  former  was  well 
known  to  the  Roman  physicians,  and  was 
common  during  the  ^Middle  Ages.  Moreover, 
the  inhabitants  of  the  New  World  take  the 


disease  in  a  very  acute  form,  and  it  is  not 
found  in  remote  communities  to  which 
Europeans  have  had  no  access.  Yellow 
fever  was  first  noted  with  certainty  in 
the  West  Indies  in  the  middle  of  the 
seventeenth  century.  The  records  of  the 
time  "  tell  of  the  importation  of  the 
disease  from  place  to  place,  and  from 
island  to  island." 

Not  till  more  than  a  century  later 
was  it   observed  on   the   West    Coast    of 

.  .  Africa.   There  can  be  no  doubt, 

rigins  however,  that  the  earlier  ob- 
...  servers  confused   yellow    fever 

with  bilious  malaria,  and  that  it 
was  present  both  in  the  West  Indies 
and  Africa  long  before  a  differential 
diagnosis  was  made.  The  fact  that  of  all 
races  negroes  are  most  resistant  to  the 
disease  would  seem  to  indicate  West  Africa 
as  the  place  of  origin.  In  any  case,  it  is 
certain  that,  with  the  exception  of  malaria, 
zymotic  diseases,  if  not  entirely  absent, 
were  extremely  rare  in  the  New  World. 


THE    DISAPPEARANCE    OF    THE    NATIVE    RACES 


ZYMOTIC  disease,  then,   arose  amongst 

^-    the  slowly-growing  populations  of  the 

Old  World.     Air  and  insect  borne  diseases 

may  have  arisen  amongst  the  early  hunters 

and   nomads.      Similar  fo  ms  of  disease, 

murrains  as  they  were  anciently  termed — 

for  example,  distemper,  rinder- 

Vi  ^*  °    pest,  the  horse  sickness  in  South 

.  ^p'  *"  .      Africa,    the    rabbit    plague   in 

a  s  s  1  n  g  ?sjQj.^]^gj.j^  Canada,  and  the  cattle 

fever  in  Texas — occur  among  lower  ani- 
mals, when  these  are  present  in  considerable 
numbers.  With  the  exception  of  tubercu- 
losis and  leprosy,  endemic  disease  was 
))robably  almost  unknown  in  the  sjnrsely- 
j)eopled  ancient  world.  The  facts  that 
air  and  water  borne  diseases  spread  very 
rapidly,  that  the  illnesses  caused  by  them 
are  comjmratively  short  and  sharp,  and 
that  recovery  is  followed  by  immunity, 
must  have  caused  rapid  exhaustion  of  the 
food  supply  of  the  microbes.  Under  such 
conditions  the  persistence  of  the  patho- 
genic species  was  maintained  among  the 
scanty  populations  by  a  passage  to  new 
and  perhaps  very  distant  sources  of  supply. 
Introduced  by  travellers,  or  si-)reading 
from  tribe  to  tribe,  they  appeared  suddenly 
in  epidemic  form  as  plagues  and  pesti- 
lences, and,  disaj:)pearing  as  suddenly,  were 
not  known  again  ^ill  a  fresh  generation 
furnished  a  fresh  supply  of  food. 

304 


When,  however,  in  spite  of  war,  famine, 
and  pestilence,  the  human  race  increased 
to  such  an  extent  that  the  number  of 
fresh  births  furnished  a  perennial  supply 
of  food,  while  at  the  same  time  a  rising 
civilisation  and  improved  means  of  com- 
munication lessened  the  isolation  of  various 
communities,  then  many  diseases  slowly 
passed  from  an  epidemic  to  an  endemic 
form.  Pestilence  grew  rare,  but  every  in- 
dividual was  exposed  to  infection,  and, 
during  youth,  either  perished  from,  or 
acquired  inmiunity  against,  the  more 
jwevalent  forms  of  disease. 

When  endemic,  zymotic  disease — at 
any  rate,  disease  against  which  immunity 
can  be  acquired — is  far  less  terrible  than 
when  epidemic.  Modern  examples  of 
ancient  ejiidemics  may  be  seen  in  isolated 
regions.  In  Pacific  islands,  for  example, 
air-borne  disease  spreads  like 
ff^.^^    .    aflame.    The  whole  community 

a  National  .    •   ,  ,  t-.  •    , 

_  IS    Stricken    down.      Ihe    sick 

courge  ^^^  left  untended  and  i)erish  in 
multitudes.  The  entire  business  of  the 
community  is  neglected,  and  famine 
frequently  follows.  Under  such  conditions 
measles  or  whooping-cough,  diseases  wliich 
we  in  England  are  accustomed  to  regard 
as  scarcely  more  than  nuisances,  may  rise 
to  the  level  of  a  great  national  disaster. 
Thus,  in  1749,  30,000  natives  perished  of 


THE    TRIUMPH    OF    RACE 


measles  on  the  banks  of  the  Amazon. 
In  1829  half  the  population  died  in 
Astoria.  In  1846  measles  committed 
frightful  ravages  in  the  Hudson  Bay 
territory.  More  recently  a  quarter  of  the 
total  inhabitants  was  swept  away  in  the 
Fiji  group  of  islands. 

At  the  dawn  of  history,  long  after 
the  evolution  of  zymotic  disease,  the 
„     .^    .  population     of     the    Eastern 

oanitation        It        ■      1  x-n  i 

.  _  ^.  Hemisphere  was  still  sparse  and 
p        .  scattered.      Even    as    late    as 

the  Norman  Conquest  that  of 
England  was  barely  two  millions — about 
one-third  of  the  number  now  present  in 
London.  Means  of  communication  were 
poor  and  beset  by  dangers.  A  journey 
from  York  to  London  was  then  a  more 
serious  affair  than  a  journey  from  London 
to  San  Francisco  to-day.  Water  and  air 
borne  diseases  were,  therefore,  absent 
during  long  periods  of  time.  When  they 
came  they  spread  as  epidemics.  According- 
ly we  read  of  plague  and  pestilence  ;  of 
diseases  suddenly  becoming  epidemic  and 
sweeping  away  a  fourth  or  half  of  entire 
communities.  Historians  are  apt  to 
attribute  these  immense  catastrophes 
partly  to  the  bad  sanitation  of  the  period 
and  partly  to  diseases  which  have  died 
out  of  the  world,  or,  at  any  rate,  out  of 
Europe.  Doubtless  they  are  right  in  a 
few  instances.  But,  apart  from  diseases 
which  spread  under  special  circumstances 
from  tropical  centres,  bad  sanitation, 
under  modern  conditions  of  intercom- 
munication and  crowding,  tends  to  render 
water-borne  disease  endemic,  not  epi- 
demic. Over  air-borne  disease  it  has  no 
effect.  Measles,  whooping-cough,  chicken- 
pox,  influenza,  common  cold,  and  small- 
pox (in  a  modified  form)  are  as  common 
as  ever. 

The    character    of    these    ancient    epi- 
demics,  their  special  symptoms  as  indi- 
cated in  old  literature,  their  sudden  and 
portentous  apj^earance,  which  men  attri- 
buted to  the   wrath    of    God, 

..*f^"w    *!.  their  tremendous  infectivity  and 

the  Wrath  ■,  j        .1     •  n 

fG  d"       rapid    spread,     their     equally 

sudden  and  complete  departure 

as  of  Divine  anger  assuaged,  point  rather 

to   air  and   water  borne  diseases  of   the 

types    now    endemic    and   comparatively 

harmless    among   us,   but   still   so  fearful 

in  their  effects  on  isolated  communities. 

Like    the    light    flashed    from    a    child's 

mirror    on    a    darkened    wall,    so    they 

flickered  and  swept   forwards  and  back- 


wards from  end  to  end  of  the  Old  World — 
from  the  Malay  Peninsula  to  the  North 
Cape  of  Norway,  from  Kamschatka  to 
the  south  point  of  Africa.  A  parallel  may 
be  found  in  the  recent  epidemic  of  rinder- 
pest amongst  the  herbivorous  animals  of 
Africa.  Years  might  pass,  old  men  might 
remember,  the  peoples  might  sacrifice  to 
their  gods  ;  but  when  a  fresh  generation 
of  those  who  knew  not  the  disease  had 
arisen,  when  the  harvest  of  the  non- 
immune was  ripe  and  ready,  the  diseases 
would  return  to  the  dreadful  reaping. 
Behind  them  the  earth  was  heaped  with 
the  dead,  and  the  few  and  stricken  survi- 
vors grubbed  for  roots  to  satisfy  their 
hunger.  To-day  sanitation  has  nearly 
abolished  water-borne  diseases,  and,  in 
a  population  largely  immune,  epidemics 
of  air-borne  disease,  like  a  light  thrown 
on  a  sunht  wall,  are  but  faint  shadows 
of  that  which  they  were  in  their  old  days 
of  awful  power. 

The  progress  of  consumption  was 
different ;  it  was  never  truly  epidemic. 
Owing  to  its  low  infectivity,  to  its  hnger- 
ing  nature,  to  the  fact  that  no  immunity 
g  could  be  acquired    against   it, 

/_    .  ,.      it  did  not  SDread  suddenly  when 
of  Resisting   r     ,       ■    .    '  j         j        t..-^      1 
Power  ■''       introduced,     but     when 

once  established  its  virulence 
did  not  abate  within  measurable  time. 
In  other  words,  it  was  endemic  from  the 
beginning.  It  made  its  home  in  the 
hovels  of  the  early  settlers  on  the  land.  In 
such  situations— as  in  Polynesian  villages 
— modern  Englishmen  do  not  take  the 
disease.  But  their  remote  ancestors  were 
more  susceptible  ;  they  could  be  infected 
by  a  smaller  dose  of  the  bacilli.  Gradually, 
as  civilisation  advanced,  the  conditions 
grew  more  stringent  ;  men  gathered  into 
larger  and  denser  communities,  into 
hamlets  and  villages  in  which  they  built 
houses  ill  lighted  and  worse  ventilated. 

With  the  rise  of  towns,  and  ultimately 
of  great  cities,  the  stringency  of  selection 
continually  increased  ;  and  with  it,  step 
by  step,  the  resisting  power  of  the  race. 
To-day  Englishmen  dwell  under  condi- 
tions as  impossible  to  their  remote  ances- 
tors as  to  the  modern  Red  Indians.  In  fact, 
no  race,  especially  in  cold  and  temperate  " 
climates,  is  now  able  to  achieve  civilisation, 
to  dwell  in  dense  communities,  unless  it  has 
previously  undergone  evolution  against 
tuberculosis.     But  of  this  m.ore  anon. 

So  during  the  long  sweep  of  the  ages 
microbic  diseases  strengthened  their  hold 

305 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


on  the  inhabitants  of  the  Eastern  Hemi- 
sphere, who  in  turn  slowly  evolved  powers 
of  resistance.  In  like  manner  antelopes 
grew  swift  and  wild  sheep  active  when 
j)ersecuted  by  beasts  of  prey.  Then, 
when  the  germs  of  disease  were  rife  in 
every  home  and  thick  on  the  garments  of 
ev'ery  man,  there  occurred  the  greatest 
event  in  human  history,  the  vastest 
tragedy.  Columbus,  sailing  across  an 
untracked  ocean,  discovered  the  Western 
Hemisphere.  The  long  separation  between 
the  inhabitants  of  tlie  East  and  West 
ended.  The  diseases  of  the  Old  World 
burst  with  cataclysmal  results  on  the  New. 
The  ancient  condition  of  the  Eastern 
Hemisphere  was  reproduced  in  the  West. 
Again  we  read  of  plague  and  pestilence, 
of  water-borne  and  air-borne  diseases 
coming  and  going  in  great  epidemics,  and 
of  the  famines  that  followed.  Measles 
and  cholera  piled  the  earth  with  the  dead. 
The  part  played  by  small-])ox  was  even 
greater.  When  taken  to  the  West  Indies 
in  1507  whole  tribes  were  exterminated. 
A  few  years  later  it  quite  depopulated 
San  Domingo.  In  Mexico  it  destroyed 
three  and  a  half  millions  of 
3,500.000      people.        Prescott      describes 

Destroyed  by  f,  ■  ^  r      ,      r        ,1  j 

c     ,,  this    first    fearful   epidemic  as 

Small-pox       .,  xi        1       J    Ti 

sweeping  over  the  land  like 
fire  over  the  prairies,  smiting  down  ])rince 
and  peasant,  and  leaving  its  path  strewn 
with  the  dead  bodies  of  the  natives,  who — 
in  the  strong  language  of  a  contemporary — 
perished  in  heaps  like  cattle  stricken  wjth 
murrain."  In  1841  Catlin  wrote  of  the 
United  States  :  "  Thirty  millions  of  white 
men  are  now  scufHing  for  the  goods  and 
luxuries  of  life  over  the  bones  of  twelve 
millions  of  red  men,  six  millions  of  whom 
have  fallen  victims  to  small-pox." 

But  the  principal  i)art  was  played  by 
tuberculosis.  Air-borne  and  water-borne 
diseases  generally  left  an  immune  remnant, 
but  against  tuberculosis  no  immunity 
could  be  acquired.  Red  Indians  and 
Caribs  could  not  in  a  few  generations 
achieve  an  evolution  which  the  inhabi- 
tants of  the  Old  World  had  accomplished 
only  after  thousands  of  years,  and  at  the 
cost  of  hundreds  of  millions  of  lives. 
Civilisation,  which  imjilit^s  a  dense  and 
settled  community  with  cities  and  towns, 
had  suddenly  i)ecome  a  necessity,  but 
remained  an  impossibility  to  all  tlie 
inhabitants  of  the  temperate  parts  of  the 
West.  It  is  a  highly  significant  fact  that 
throughout   the   New   World   no   city   or 

306 


town  has  its  native  quarter,  whereas 
every  European  settlement  in  Asia  and 
Africa  has  its  native  suburbs.  The 
aborigines  of  the  New  World  are  found 
only  in  remote  or  inaccessible  parts. 

The  following  is  an  example  of  the 
manner  in  which  tuberculosis  went  to 
work  :  "  The  tribe  of  Hapaa  is  said  to 
have  numbered  some  four  hun- 
s^"^  dred  when  the  smallpox  came 
..  *  pf^**  and  reduced  them  by  one- 
fourth.  Six  months  later,  a 
woman  developed  tubercular  consumption  ; 
the  disease  spread  like  fire  about  the  valley, 
and  in  less  than  a  year  two  survivors,  a 
man  and  a  woman,  fled  from  the  newly- 
created  solitude.  .  .  .  Early  in  the 
year  of  my  visit,  for  example,  or  late  in 
the  year  before,  a  first  case  of  phthisis 
appeared  in  a  household  of  seventeen 
persons,  and  by  the  end  of  August, 
when  the  tal^  was  told  to  me,  one  soul 
survived,  a  boy  who  had  been  absent 
on  his  schooling." 

The  Caribs  of  the  West  Indies  are 
alm.ost  extinct.  The  Red  Indians  are 
going  fast,  as  are  the  aborigines  of  cold 
and  temperate  South  America.  The  Tas- 
manians  have  gone.  The  Australians  and 
the  Maoris  are  but  a  dwindling  remnant. 
As  surely  as  the  trader  with  his  clothes, 
or  the  missionary  with  his  church  and 
schoolroom  appears,  the  work  of  exter- 
mination begins  on  Polynesian  islands. 
Throughout  the  whole  vast  extent  of  the 
New  World  the  only  pure  aboiigines  who 
seem  destined  to  persist  are  those  which 
live  remote  in  mountains  or  in  the  depths 
of  fever-haunted  forests,  where  the  white 
man  is  unable  to  build  the  towns  and 
cities  with  which  he  has  studded  the 
cooler  and  more  "  healthy "  regions  of 
the  north  and  south. 

Many  explanations,  or  pseudo-exj)lana- 
tions,  have  been  offered  to  account  for 
the  disapi)earance  of  the  natives.  We  are 
told  that  they  cannot  endure  "  domestica- 
tion," that  they  "  pine  like 
aces  a  caged  eaeles  "  in  confinement, 
Decline  before  .,     ,     .1  i  1  11 

the  Whites    ^'.^^. .  ^^f:  ^'^'-^"f  p;;"^^"^^fV^y 

civilisation  makes  tliem  inler- 
tile,  as  the  change  produced  by  ca])tivity 
makes  .some  wild  animals  infertile,  and  so 
forth.  But  the  only  ]ieoples  who  are  disap- 
pearing are  those  of  the  New  World,  some  of 
whom  were  b  no  means  savage.  In  Asia 
and  Africa  are  many  tribes  far  lower  in  the 
scale  of  civilisation  who  have  persisted  in 
constant  communication  with  dense  and 


THE  EVE  OF  "THE  VASTEST  TRAGEDY  IN  HISTORY":  COLUMBUS  SIGHTING  AMERICA 
"The  greatest  event  and  the  vastest  tragedy  in  human  history"  is  Dr.  Archdall  Raid's  striking  description 
of  the  discovery  of  America  by  Cohimbus.  It  ended  the  long  separation  between  the  inhabitants  of 
East  and  West,  and  the  diseases  of  the  Old  World  burst  with  cataclysmal  results  upon  the  New.  The 
picture,   by  George   Harvey,   shows   Columbus   approaching  America,   his   rebellious  crew  pleading  for  pardon. 


settled  communities  from  time  immemorial. 
Notwithstanding  all  that  has  been  written, 
the  people  of  the  New  World  do  not 
wither  away  mysteriously  when  brought 
into  contact  with  the  white  man.  They 
die  as  other  men  do  of  violence,  or  famine, 
or  old  age,  or  disease.  But  deaths  from 
all  these  causes,  except  the  last,  are  now 
comparatively  lare  amongst  them — much 
rarer  than  formerly  during  the  time  of 
their  perpetual  wars.  The  vast  majority 
die  of  imported  diseases — exactly  the 
same  diseases  as  white  men  die  of.  But 
their  mortality  is  invariably  much  higher 
than  that  of  white  men,  and  they  perish 
on  an  average  at  a  younger  age. 

All  this  is  not  mere  hypothesis.  It  can 
be  proved  by  reference  to  carefully  col- 
lected and  tabulated  statistics  published 
by  every  department  of  Public  Health  in 
America,  Australasia,  and  Polynesia.  The 
cause  of  the  sterility  cannot  be  demon- 
strated with  the  same  precision  ;  but  it  is 
hardly  necessary  to  invent  fanciful  causes 
when  a  reasonable  one  is  to  hand.     The 


high  mortality  indicates  a  high  sick-rate, 
and  presumably  illness  is  as  much  a 
cause  of  sterility  in  the  New  World  as 
in  the  Old,  among  savages  as  among 
civilised  people. 

The  Spanish  conquest  of  the  West  Indies 
was  followed  by  the  swift  disappearance 
of  the  natives.  To  that  end  the  Spaniards 
unconsciously  adopted  the  most  effectual 
means  possible.  They  satisfied  their  greed 
by  forcing  the  natives  to  labour  in  planta- 
tions and  in  mines,  and  their  religious 
enthusiasm  by  compelling  attendance  in 
churches  and  cathedrals.  In  other  words, 
they  placed  the  natives  under  conditions 
the  most  favourable  for  acquiring  the 
diseases  which  they  imported  by  every 
vessel.  When  the  native  population 
dwindled,  it  was  replaced  by  negro  slaves 
from  West  Africa. 

The  history  of  negro  migrations  is 
extremely  interesting  and  illuminating. 
There  are  no  accounts  of  negro  conquest 
outside  the  limits  of  Africa,  but  from  very 
ancient  times  a  constant  stream  of  slaves 

307 


History  of   the  world 


has  passed  to  Southern  Europe  and  Asia, 
where  they  have  been  employed  mainly 
in  domestic  service,  and  in  more  modern 
times  to  America,  where  their  occupation 
has  been  mainly  agricultural.  The  in- 
vasion of  Asia  has  continued  to  our  own 
day.  But  one  may  search  from  Spain  to 
the    Malay    peninsula     and,    except     in 

...  _.  recent  importations,  find 
Africans  Die  i  '  r 

scarcely  a  trace   of    a    negro 

J^.  "r  ,.  ancestry.  Yet  slaves,  like 
Civilisation  ^.i  i      li  x 

cattle,  are  valuable  property, 

more  cheaply  bred  than  imported.  In 
Eastern  countries  they  have  often  been 
kindly  treated,  and  many  have  attained 
to  wealth  and  power.  Like  tlie  African 
soldiers  in  Ceylon,  of  whom  it  is  recorded 
that,  though  many  thousands  were  im- 
ported by  the  Dutch  and  English,  hardly 
d  descendant  survives,  all  perished  in  a  few 
generations,  the  elimination  of  the  unfit 
being  so  stringent  as  to  cause  extinction, 
not  evolution.  A  permanent  colony  of 
native  Africans  in  the  midst  of  an 
ancient  consumption-infested  civihsation 
is  impossible. 

The  fate  of  the  negro-  migrations  into 
America  has  been  different.  The  race 
•had  undergone  some  evolution  against 
consumi)tion  in  Africa,  and,  therefore,  was 
more  resistant  than  the  vanishing  abori- 
gines. In  its  new  home,  employed  in 
agriculture  in  a  hot  climate  where  white 
men    and    tubercle    bacilli,    also     recent 


importations,  were  as  yet  few  in  numbers, 
it  was  placed  under  the  best  conditions 
possible.  Gradually,  as  the  stringenc  ■  of 
selection  waxed,  it  evolved  resisting 
power.  To-day,  American  negroes  are  able 
to  dwell  even  in  Northern  cities,  though  it 
is  said  "  every  other  adult  negro  dies  of  con- 
sumption." After  the  discovery  ot  America 
the  principal  maritime  races  of  Western 
Europe  competed  for  its  possession.  S])ain 
and  Portugal,  then  powerful  nations,  had 
the  first  start  in  the  race,  and  chose  the 
seemingly  richer  tropics.  But  the  forests 
of  the  centre  and  south  were  defended  by 
malaria,  which  raised  a  barrier  against 
immigration,  and  by  heat  and  light, 
which  raised  a  barrier  against  tubercu- 
losis. Moreover,  the  Spaniards  and  the 
Portuguese  intermarried  freely  with  the 
aborigines,  and  the  mixed  race  which 
resulted  inherits  in  half  measure  the 
resisting  power  of  both  stocks.  At  the 
present  day  this  mixed  race,  with  a 
leavening  of  mulattoes,  pure  Spaniards, 
Portuguese,  and  negroes,  inhabits  the 
cities  and  more  civilised  parts.  Even  in 
tropical  America  the  pure  aborigines  are 
found,  speaking  generally,  only 


^  **!  °      ,     beyond   the  verge  of    civilisa 
Natives  of  -^         —       -  °       -       - 

America 


tion.  Farther  south  the  dis- 
appearance of  the  natives  lias 
been  more  complete,  and  the  cooler, 
healthier,  and  more  open  pampas  are  settled 
by  a  race  more  purely  European. 


THE    TRIUMPH    OF    THE    ANGLO-SAXON     PEOPLES 


HTHE   weaker  British   and   French   were 
*      shouldered  into  the  seemingly  inhos- 
pitable north.      But  the  British  won  the 
battle  of  Quebec,  and  the  French  immigra- 
tion soon  ceased.    That  little  fight  is  half 
forgotten,  but  it  is  doubtful  if  any  battle 
in  history  had   results  half  so  important. 
It  placed  all  North  America  in  the  grasp 
of   the   Anglo-Saxon,   and   gave   his   race 
enormous  sj)ace  for  expansion.   Unchecked 
by   malaria,    the    new-comers 
xpansion      gathered  into  communities  and 
°      *  „  built  towns  and  cities  such  as 

ng  o-   axon  jj^^^^.^  y^jjjf.)^  across  the  .\tlantic 

were  the  homes  of  tuberculosis.  The 
cold  forced  them  to  admit  little  air  and 
light  into  their  dwellings.  The  aborigines 
melted  away  from  the  borders  of  the 
settlements.  Under  the  conditions  there 
was  little  intermarriage.  In  that  chmate 
Indian  women,  and  even  half-caste  chil- 
dren, could  not  exist  within  stone  walls. 

308 


The  few  white  men  who  took  native 
wives  preserved  them  only  while  living 
a  wild  life  remote  from  their  kin. 

The  British  conquest  of  North  America 
and  Australasia  resembles  the  Saxon  con- 
quest of  Great  Britain.  The  natives  have 
been  exterminated  within  the  area  of 
settlement.  It  is  in  sharp  contrast  to 
their  conquests  in  Asia  and  Africa.  Both 
in  the  Old  World  and  in  the  New  the  sub- 
jugation of  the  natives  was  accompanied 
by  many  wars  and  much  bloodshed,  and 
piobably  the  conflicts  in  the  former  were 
more  prolonged  and  destructive  than 
those  in  the  latter.  But  in  no  part  of  the 
Old  World  have  the  British  exterminated 
the  natives.  They  do  not  supj^lant  them  ; 
they  merely  govern  them.  Southern  Asia 
and  East  and  West  Africa  are  defended  by 
•  malaria.  The  British  cannot  colonise 
them,  and  the  natives  have  undergone 
such  evolution  against   tuberculosis  that 


WHERE  THE  ANGLO-SAXON  RACE  OBTAINED  POSSESSION  OF  NORTH  AMERICA 
On  the  Plains  of  Abraham,  outside  Quebec,  the  British  and  French  troops  fought  in  1759,  and  the  battle  placed  all 
North  America  in  the  grasp  of  the  Anglo-Saxon,  giving  his  race  enormous  space  for  expansion.  It  is  doubtful,  says 
Dr.    Archdall  Reid,   if  any   battle   in   history   had  results   half  so   important   as  this,    although   it  is   half  forgotten 


they  are  capable  of  resisting  the  hard  con- 
ditions imposed  by  modern  civilisation.  In 
South  Africa,  where  there  is  little  malaria, 
Europeans  share  the  land  with  the  natives, 
but  the  latter  are  likely  to  remain  in  an 
overwhelming  majority. 

If  history  teaches  any  lesson  with 
clearness  it  is  this — that  conquest,  to  be 
permanent,  must  be  accompanied  with 
extermination,  otherwise  in  the  fulness 
of  time  the  natives  expel  or  absorb  the 
conquerors.  The  Saxon  conquest  of 
England  was  permanent  ;  of  the  Norman 
conquest  there  remains  scarcely  a  trace. 
The  Huns  and  the  Franks  founded  perma- 
nent empires  in  Europe ;  the  Roman 
Empire,  and  that  of  the  Saracens  in 
Spain,  soon  tumbled  into  ruins.  It  is 
highly  improbable,  therefore,  that  the 
British  will  retain  their  hold  on  their  Old 
World  dependencies.  A  handful  of  aliens 
cannot  for  ever  keep  in  subjugation  large 
and  increasing  races  that  yearly  become 
more  intelligent  and  insistent  in  their 
demands  for  self-government.  But  no 
probable  conjunction  of  circumstances 
can  be  thought  of  that  will  uproot  the 
Anglo-Saxons  from  their  wide  possession 
in  the  New  World.  The  wars  of  extermina- 
tion are  ceasing  with  the  spread  of  civilisa- 
tion.   We  have  ransacked  the  world,  and 


now  know  every  important  disease. 
Diseases  cannot  come  to  us  as  they  came 
to  our  forefathers  and  to  the  Red  Indians, 
like  visitations  from  on  high.  All  the 
diseases  that  are  capable  of  travelling  have 
very  nearly  reached  their  limits ;  the 
rest  we  are  able  to  check.  Even  in  the 
unlikely  event  of  a  new  disease  arising,  it 
would  affect  other  races  equally.  Canada 
and  Australasia,  like  the  United  States, 
may  separate  from  the  parent  stem,  but 
the  race  will  persist.  If  ever  a  New 
Zealander  broods  over  the  ruins  of  London, 
he  will  be  of  British  descent. 

The  natural  history  of  man  is,  in  effect, 
a  history  of  his  evolution  against  disease. 
The  story  unfolded  by  it  is  of  greater 
proportions  than  all  the  mass  of  trivial 
gossip  about  kings  and  queens  and  the 
accounts  of  futile  dynastic  wars  and 
stupid  religious  controversies  which  fill 
so  large  a  space  in  his  written  political 
history.  In  the  latter,  as  told  by  historians, 
groping  in  obscurity  and  blinded  by  their 
own  preconceptions,  men  and  events  are 
often  distorted  out  of  all  proportions. 
A  clever  but  prejudiced  writer  may  pass 
base  metal  into  perpetual  circulation  as 
gold.  Luther  and  the  Reformation  are 
accepted  as  Divine  by  many  people  ; 
they  are  reviled  as  diabolical  by  more. 

309 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Cromwell  was  long  regarded  as  accursed  ; 
to-day  he  is  half-deitied.  How  many  of 
us  are  able  to  decide,  on  grounds  of  fact, 
not  of  fiction,  whether  the  Roman  Empire 
perished  because  the  Romans,  becoming 
luxurious,  sinned  against  our  moral  code, 
as  ecclesiastic  historians  would  have  us 
believe,   or  because  a  disease  of  intoler- 

ance  and  stupidity  clouded 
a  ura  ^j^^  clear  Roman  brain  and 
IS  ory  enfeebled    the  strong   Roman 

of  Mankind     ,         ,  /^■^  ^  P i  i 

hand,  as  Gibbon  would  have  us 

think  ?  But  the  natural  history  of  man 
deals,  without  obscurity  and  without  uncer- 
tainty, with  greater  matters.  Study  it,  and 
the  mists  clear  away  from  much  even  of 
political  history.  We  see  clearly  how  little 
the  conscious  efforts  of  man  have  influenced 
his  destiny.  We  see  forces  unrecognised, 
enormous,  uncontrolled,  uncontrollable, 
working  slowly  but  mightily  towards  tre- 
mendous conclusions — forces  so  irresistible 
and  unchanging  that,  watching  them,  we 
are  able  even  to  forecast  something  of  the 
future. 

The  mere  political  results  of  man's  evolu- 
1  ion  against  disease  are  of  almo  >t  incalculable 
rnagnitude.  The  human  races  of  one  half 
of  the  world  are  dying,  and  are  being  re- 
placed by  races  from  the  other  half.  Not  all 
the  wars  of  all  time  taken  together  con- 
stitute so  great  a  tragedy.  A  quite  dis- 
proportionate part  in  this  great  movement 
has  been  borne  by  our  own  race.  It  has 
seized  on  the  larger  part  of  those  regions 
in  which  the  aborigines  were  incapable  of 
civilisation,  because  incapable  of  resisting 
consumption,  and  we.'e  undefended  by 
malaria.  In  the  void  created  by  disease 
it  has  more  room  to  spread  and  multi])ly 
than  any  other  race. 

Other  races  may  dream  of  foreign 
conquests,  but  the  time  for  founding 
permanent  empires  is  past.  There 
remains  for  them  only  temporary  con- 
quest, in  a  few  malarious  parts  of  the 
world  in  which  Europeans  cannot  flourish 

...  .         and     supplant    the     natives. 

Disease  is         c       •  j        n     i         i        i      i. 

w  •..•     .1.      Spain     and      Portugal      lost 

Mightier  than  ,  A   ■  i        i  u         xu 

th  Sw  d  their  opportunity  when  they 
turned  from  the  temperate 
regions  and  chose  the  tropics.  France  lost 
her  opportunity  on  the  Heights  of  Abra- 
ham. Germany  is  more  than  a  century  too 
late  in  the  start.  Russia  can  conquer  only 
hardy  aliens  who  will  multii)ly  under  her 
rule  and  ultimately  assert  their  suj)remacy. 
In  times  now  far  remote  in  the  history 
of  civilised  peoples,  the  sword  was  the 
310 


principal  means  for  digging  deep  the 
foundations  of  permanent  empires.  Its 
place  was  taken  by  a  more  efficient 
instrument.  A  migrating  race,  armed 
with  a  new  and  deadly  disease,  and  with 
high  powers  of  resisting  it,  possesses  a 
terrible  weapon  of  offence.  But  now 
disease  has  spread  over  the  whole  world 
and  so  is  losing  its  power  of  building 
empires.  The  long  era  of  the  great 
migrations  of  the  human  race,  of  the 
great  conquests,  is  closing  fast. 

It  is  generally  supposed  by  historians 
and  others  that  races  that  disappear  before 
the  march  of  civilisation  are  mentally 
unfitted  for  it.  The  assumption  is  not 
supported  by  an  iota  of  real  evidence.  To 
be  mentally  incapable  a  race  must  be  of  very 
defective  memory.  Recently  a  school  of 
Australian  natives,  who  belong  to  one  of 
the  "  lowest  "  of  races,  took  the  first  place 
in  the  colony.  Negroes  occupy  a  very 
inferior  position  in  America,  especially 
in  Anglo-Saxon  territories.  But  they 
are  stamped  by  glaring  physical  differ- 
ences, are  treated  with  great  contempt 
and  jealousy  by  the  whites,  and  their 
acquired  mental  attitudes, 
therefore,  do  not  develop 
under  good  conditions.  It 
is  very  possible  that  they  are 
mentally  inferior  to  the  whites  ;  but  not 
so  inferior  as  is  commonly  believed. 

Russian  peasants,  though  not  sharply 
differentiated  by  physical  peculiarities 
from  the  governing  classes,  are  equally 
scorned  by  them,  and  show  a  mental 
develojmient  hardly,  if  at  all,  superior  to 
the  negroes  of  United  States.  The  Latins 
of  South  America  seem  very  incapable  of 
orderly  government,  but  they  are  the  heirs 
of  a  civilisation  older  than  our  own.  At 
any  rate,  while  it  is  conceivable  the 
American  negroes  and  some  other  races 
are  incapable  of  building  up  a  highly- 
enlightened  society  by  their  own  efforts,  it 
is  manifest  that  they  are  able  to  persist  and 
niultiply  when  civilised  conditions  are  im- 
posed on  them.  Not  so  the  aborigines 
of  the  New  World,  some  of  whom — for 
example,  the  Maoris  and  the  Polynesians — 
are  admittedly  of  good  mental  type.  They 
perish  swiftly  and  helplessly  of  bodily 
ailments. 

Very  clearly,  then,  human  races  are 
capable  or  incapable  of  civilisation,  not 
because  they  are  mentalh^  but  because 
they  are  physically,  fit  or  unfit. 

G.  Archdall  Reid 


Possibilities 
of  the 
Black  Races 


AN  ALPHABET  OF  RACES 

BEING     A     HANDY     DICTIONARY     OF     MANKIND 
BY    W.    E.    GARRETT    FISHER 


AN  attempt  is  made  in  these  pages  to 
compile  a  dictionary  of  the  main 
existing  races  of  the  world,  arranged  in 
ali)habetical  order.  The  accompanying 
Etlinological  Chart  on  page  352,  will 
enable  the  reader  to  see  at  a  glance  the 
relationship  of  the  varions  main  divisions, 
families,  and  stocks  under  which  these 
races  are  distributed.  The  Dictionary  and 
the  Chart,  if  used  in  conjunction,  will 
thus  supply  information  about  any  race 
named  in  the  list,  and  will  tell  the 
inquirer  to  what  branch  of  the  human 
race  it  belongs.  It  is  obviously  impossible 
to  m.ake  the  Dictionary  inclusive  of  every 
tiny  and  out-of-the-way  tribe  of  Africa  or 
South  America,  but  all  important  races 
are  included.  If  the  reader  wants  to  know 
something  about  the  Abyssinians,  he  will 
look  them  up  in  the  Dictionary,  and  find 
that  they  are  ])artly  Semitic  Himyarites, 

Ababua.  A  tribe  of  Sudanese  negroes  in 
Cintral  Africa.     See  Wf.lle  Group. 

Abaka.     See  Nilitic  Group. 

Abkhasians.  A  Western  Caucasian  tribe 
occu])yinfj  the  Black  Sea  coast  from  Pitzunta 
to  Mingrelia,  akin  to  Circassians  (q.v.). 

Abo,  or  Ibo.     See  Nigerian  Group. 

Abors.  An  Assamese  tribe  in  the  Brahmaputra 
VaUey,  belonging  to  the  Tibetan  branch  of  the 
Southern  Alongolic  family-    Wild  jungle-dwellers. 

Absarakas.     See  Siouan. 

Abukaya.  A  negro  tribe  in  the  Sudan.  See 
Nilitic  Group. 

Abunda.  A  settled  and  fairly  civilised  race 
of  I5antu  Negroes,  occupying  the  seaboard  and 
inland  districts  of  Portuguese  West  Africa,  south 
of  Ainbriz. 

Abyssinians.  A  mixed  race  of  Hamitic, 
Semitic,  and  Negro  stock,  inhabiting  Abyssinia 
(from  Arabic  liabns/ii — mixed).  The  main  racial 
element — Abyssinians  proper — consists  of  brown- 
skinned  Semitic  Himyarites,  who  probably  emi- 
grated from  Arabia  in  prehistoric  times,  and 
profess  themselves  descended  from  the  Queen  of 
Sheba.  Since  the  sixteenth  century  Abyssinia 
has  been  over-run  by  the  Hamitic  Gallas  (q.v.), 
who  have  largely  mingled  their  blood  with  this 
older  clement.  There  is  also  a  considerable 
admixture  of  Sudanese  Negro  blood.  Since  the 
fourth  century  the  religion  of  Abyssinia  has  been 
a  corrupt  form  of  Christianity  ;  the  mediaeval 
myth  of  Prester  John  perhaps  relates  to  this  fact. 

Acadians.  French  settlers  of  seventeenth 
century  in  Nova  Scotia. 


partly  Hamitic  Gallas,  etc.  The  Chart 
will  then  show  him  that  the  Hamitic  and 
Semitic  families  belong  to  the  great 
Caucasic  Division  of  mankind,  that  the 
Himyarites  are  one  of  the  main  stocks  of 
the  Semitic  family,  and  that  the  Gallas 
belong  to  the  Eastern  branch  of  the 
Hamitic  family.  The  student  should 
familiarise  himself  with  the  names  and 
places  of  the  families  and  chief  stocks  of 
mankind,  as  given  in  the  Chart,  and  so 
greatly  facilitate  the  task  of  reference. 
The  intention  of  both  Chart  and  Dictionary 
is,  of  course,  to  serve  as  a  kind  of  index 
to  the  History  proper,  which  must  be 
consulted  for  further  information.  As  far 
as  can  be  discovered,  no  previous  attempt 
has  been  made  to  summarise  the  con- 
clusions of  modern  ethnology  in  this 
convenient  form.  The  illustrations  depict 
some     of     the     most     interesting    races. 

Achseans.     See  Argives 

Achinese.  A  warlike  Malay  race  of  Sumatra, 
long  at  war  with  the  Dutch  colonists. 

Accras.     See  Ga. 

Achuas,  or  Wochua.  A  pygmy  Negrito  race, 
well-proportioned,  though  dwarfish,  inhabiting 
the  forests  of  the  \\'elle  and  Aruwimi  districts 
in  Central  Africa,  and  living  by  hunting. 

Adamawa  Group.  A  group  of  Sudanese  Negro 
tribes  inhabiting  the  district  of  the  Upper  Benue 
in  Northern  Nigeria. 

Adansis.  Negro  tribe  on  Guinea  coast.  Sc« 
TsHi. 

yCoIians.     See  Hellenes. 

Aetas.  A  Negrito  race  of  the  Philippine 
Islands,  belonging  to  the  Oceanic  lamily  of 
Ethiopic  Man.  Short  of  stature,  black-skinned, 
with  woolly  hair,  they  present  many  points  of 
resemblance  to  the  Negritoes  of  Central  Africa . 
There  are  many  crosses  between  Aetas  and 
Malays. 

Afars.  A  nomadic  Turki  tribe  of  Persia.  See 
also  Danakii.s. 

Afghans.  A  race  of  Iranian  stock,  belonging 
to  the  great  Aryan  family,  who  form  about  half 
the  population  of  Afghanistan.  They  are  divided 
into  various  tribes,  of  which  the  Duranis  are  the 
dominant  one,  the  Ghilzais  the  most  warlike,  and 
the  Yusufzais  the  most  turbulent.  There  are  also 
large  tribes  known  as  Pathans,  who  are  of  the 
same  stock  as  the  .\fghans,  but  are  classed 
separately.  The  Afghans  are  a  liandsome  and 
athletic  race,  inured  to  war  from  their  childhood, 
lav.-lcss  and  treacherous,  but  sober  and  hardy. 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Throughout  the  nineteenth  century  they  were  a 
constant  source  of  trouble  to  British  India,  but 
a  new  era  seems  to  have  opened  under  the  present 
Amir.  For  non-Afghan  inhabitants  of  Afghanis- 
tan, see  Hazaras,  Kizil-Bashis,  and  Tajiks. 

Afridis.  A  warlike  and  turbulent  Pathan  race, 
occupying  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Khyber 
Pass,  ami  often  at  war  with  the  English. 

Afrikanders.  Persons  of  European  descent 
born  and  living  in  South  Africa. 

Agaos.  An  indigenous  Hamitic  race  of 
Northern  Abyssinia. 

Ahoms.  Primitive  inhabitants  of  Assam, 
belonging  to  the  Indo-Chinese  stock  of  the 
Southern  IMongolic  family. 

Ainus.  An  aberrant  famil)'  of  Caucasic  Man 
in  the  Far  East.  They  were  probably  the 
aboriginal  inhabitants  of  Japan,  but  are  now 
few  in  number,  and  confined  to  Yezo,  the  Kurile 
Islands,  and  part  of  Sakhalin.  They  have  regu- 
lar and  often  handsome  features  of  Caucasic 
type,  but  are  of  low  stature,  and  characteristically 
marked  by  an  abuntlance  of  coarse,  black,  wavy 
or  crisp  hair  on  head,  face,  and  body,  whence 
they  are  commonly  called  the  "  Hairy  Ainus." 

Akawais.     See  Caribs. 

Akkas.  A  pygmy  Negrito  race  of  the  Welle 
district  in  Central  Africa,  akin  to  the  Achuas 
(q.v.),  who  are  specially  interesting  because 
they  are  represented  on  Egyptian  monuments  of 
3400  B.C.,  with  their  existing  racial  characters. 

Akkads,  or  Akkadians.  An  extinct  Meso- 
potamian  race,  founders  of  the  oldest  known 
civilisation  in  Babylonia,  who  belonged  to  the 
Northern  Mongolic  family,  and  probably  to  the 
Turki  or  Finno-Ugrian  stock.  They  invented  the 
cuneiform  alphabet,  which  was  adopted  by  their 
Semitic  successors — see  Babylonians — and  it  is 
thought  that  they  may  have  been  the  ancestors 
of  the  Chinese. 

Akpas.     See  Nigerian  Group. 

Alani.  A  warlike  nomadic  race,  probably 
belonging  to  the  Turki  stock  of  the  Northern 
Mongolic  family,  and  allied  to  the  Tartars  (q.v.). 
In  the  fifth  century  they  made  settlements  in 
Gaul  and  Spain,  where  they  were  absorbed  by 
the  Vandals  and  the  Visigoths  res]:)cctively.  The 
remnant  left  in  the  East  of  Europe  were  con- 
quered in  the  thirteenth  century  by  the  Golden 
Horde,  and  their  name  disappeared  from  history. 

Albanians,  or  Arnauts.  The  warlike  race  of 
mountaineers  who  inhabit  Albania,  on  the 
western  coast  of  the  Balkan  Peninsula.  They  are 
semi-civilised,  live  in  a  perpetual  state  of  tribal 
warfare,  and  make  admirable  soldiers,  forming 
the  best  part  of  the  Turkish  Army.  They  are 
probably  the  oldest  of  the  Balkan  races,  and 
represent  the  earliest  Aryan  immigrants  into 
Europe  [see  Illyrians).  They  arc  partly 
Christian,  partly  Mohammedan. 

Albigenses.  A  heretical  sect,  mostly  of 
Provcnral  descent,  who  appeared  in  the  South 
of  France  about  the  eleventh  century,  and  were 
rigidly  persecuted  until  they  became  extinct  in 
the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  century. 

Alccnanni.  An  ancient  German  tribe  on  Upper 
Rhine,  of  Teutonic  stock,  from  whom  the  modern 
Swatiians  and  Swiss  are  in  great  part  descended. 

Aleutians.  Natives  of  Aleutian  Islands,  be- 
longmg  to  Eskimo  stock  of  Northern  American 
family. 

Alfuros.  A  half-breed  race  between  Malays 
and    Papuans :  in   Malaysia,   a   term    given    by 

312 


Malays  to  their  rude  non-Mohammedan  neigh- 
bours. 

Algonquian.  A  group  of  North  American 
Indian  tribes,  formerly  inhabiting  the  Central 
and  Southern  States  of  America,  east  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  and  as  far  south  as  South 
Carolina,  now  gathered  into  Indian  Reservations. 
They  include  the  Algonquin,  Blackfoot,  Chey- 
enne, Cree,  Delaware,  Fox,  Illinois,  Massachusett, 
Mohican,  Ojibway,  Sac,  Shawnee,  and  many 
smaller  tribes. 

Alibamus.     See   Muskhogean. 

Ali-Elis.     See  Turkomans. 

Alsatians.  Natives  of  Alsace,  of  High  German 
stock,  allied  to  the  Swabians  (q.v.). 

Atnadis.     See  Welle  Group. 

Ama.  Prefix  of  many  Bantu  racial  names,  as 
Ama-Zulu,  Ama-Xosa.     See  Zulu,  etc. 

American.  One  of  the  four  main  divisions  of 
the  human  race,  comprising  three  families, 
occupying  North,  Central,  and  Southern  .\mc'rica 
respectively.  Typically  red-skinned,  with  lank, 
black  hair,  retreating  foreheads,  high-bridgetl 
noses,  antl  either  long  or  broatl  skulls — dolicho- 
ce])halic  or  brachycephalic. 

Americans.  The  English-speaking  white  in- 
habitants of  the  United  States,  mainlj^  of  Anglo- 
Saxon  descent.     See  also  Latin  Americans. 

Amharas.  Natives  of  Central  Abyssinia,  of 
Hamitic  tlcscent. 

Amorites.  A  branch  of  the  ancient  Libyan 
race,  of  Semitic  origin,  inhabiting  Canaan  before 
the  arrival  of  the  Israelites  from  Egypt. 

Anatolian  Turks.     See  Turks. 

Andamanese.  Natives  of  Andaman  Islands, 
a  race  belonging  to  the  Oceanic  Negrito  family, 
possibly  representing  the  primitive  type  from 
which  both  Negroes  and  Papuans  have  sprung. 
They  exhibit  the  lowest  stage  of  civilisation. 

Andis.     See  Lesghians. 

Angles.  A  Teutonic  race  of  Low  German 
stock,  who  formerly  inhabited  the  country  round 
Schleswig,  in  North  Germany.  In  the  fifth 
century  they  migrated  in  large  numbers  to 
Britain,  and  with  the  Jutes  and  Saxons  formed 
the  stock  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  or  English  people.     - 

Anglo-Saxons.  A  general  name  now  given  to 
the  English-speaking  races  of  English,  Scotch, 
and  even  Irish  and  Welsh  descent,  who  inhal)it 
the  British  Empire  ;  in  a  wider  sense,  to  all  people 
of  British  descent. 

Annamese.  Natives  of  Annam,  or  Cochin- 
China,  belonging  to  the  Indo-Chinese  stock  of  the 
Southern  Mongolic  family ;  now  under  French  rule. 

Apaches.     See  Athabascan. 

Appalachis.     See  jMuskhogean. 

Arabs.  One  of  the  main  branches  of  the 
Semitic  family,  inhabiting  the  Arabian  peninsula. 
They  are  usually  divided  into  two  branches,  the 
Ishmaelites  of  the  north  and  the  Joktanides  of 
the  south.  The  latter  probably  represent  the 
oiliest  Arab  stock,  and  may  be  of  African  origin. 
The  primitive  Arabs  were  nomadic  horse-breeders 
and  shepherds,  very  warlike,  and  of  fine  physical 
development.  Under  Islam  they  reared  an  endur- 
ing religious  civilisation,  which  has  had  the 
greatest  infiuence  on  the  world  after  Christianity. 

Arakanese.  Natives  of  Arakan,  in  Lower 
BuriiKi,  of  Indo-Chinese  stock. 

Aramaeans.  One  of  the  main  groups  of  the 
Semitic  family,  Syro-Chaldeans,  who  anciently 
inhabited  Syria,  Palestine,  and  the  Euphrates 
\'alley.     The  modern  Syrians  (q.v.)  belong  to  it. 


^ 


A 


BY    SIR     DAVtD     WILKIE,    R.A. 


/' 


/^ 


A    NATIVE    OF    BRITISH    WDIA 


313 


314 


A     CIRCASSIAN     LADY 


A     SPANISH     CHILD     WITH     HER     NURSE 


315 


A     PERSIAN     PRINCE     AND     HIS     NUBIAN     SLAVE 


316 


■ill  1 


A    DRAGOMAN    AT    BEYROUT 


_J 


317 


A    TRAVELLING    TARTAR 


318 


''^WSTf 


fMi' 


AN    ARAB     SHEIK 


319 


1  .^  j;3S«i:'. 


320 


AN    ALPHABET    OF    THE    WORLD'S    RACES 


Araucanians.  The  chief  Indian  race  of  ChiH, 
possessing  an  ancient  civiUsation  hke  those  of 
Peru  and  Mexico,  though  less  advanced  The 
Araucanians  are  probably' the  finest  native  race 
of  the  New  World.  They  are  a  fierce  and  warlike 
people,  who  have  always  preserved  their  inde- 
pcnilcnce. 

Arawaks.  A  group  of  South  American  Indian 
tribes  in  the  Guianas,  incUuiing  Maypuris, 
\\'apisianas,  Atorais  and  others. 

Arcadians.  A  race  of  ancient  Greece,  inhabit- 
ing the  central  highlands  of  the  Peloponnesus, 
whose  seclusion  from  the  world  caused  them  to 
be  idcutiticd  with  the  quality  which  we  still  call 
Arcatlian  simplicity. 

Arecunas.     See  Caribs. 

Argentines.  White  natives  of  the  Argentine 
Republic  in  South  America,  mainly  of  Spanish 
descent. 

Argives.  Natives  of  Argos,  the  most  im- 
portant state  of  Homeric  Greece  :  hence  a  generic 
term  for  Greeks  or  Hellenes  in  the  Homeric 
Age.     Achaeans  is  another  term  similarly  used. 

Armenians.  Natives  of  Armenia,  the  moun- 
tainous country  round  Mount  Ararat,  now  divided 
between  Russia,  Persia,  and  Turkey.  They 
belong  to  the  Iranian  stock  of  the  Aryan  family, 
blended  with  Semitic  blood,  and  with  a  still 
older  unknown  but  probably  non-Aryan  element. 
They  are  not  warlike,  but  of  quick  intelligence 
and  specially  successful  in  commerce. 

Arnauts.     See  Albanians. 

Aryans.  The  most  important  family  of  Cau- 
casic  Man,  to  which  all  the  chief  civilisations  of 
modern  times  belong.  A  tall,  fau-skinned,  long- 
headed race,  whose  origin  is  still  doubtful — 
though  it  was  probably  in  Central  Asia — and  who 
spread  in  prehistoric  times  over  the  whole  of 
Europe  and  parts  of  Asia  and  Africa.  Almost  all 
modern  Europeans  are  of  Aryan  descent.  The 
family  is  also  called  Indo-European  or  Indo- 
Germanic,  but  these  names  are  open  to  objec- 
tions from  which  the  term  Aryan  is  free. 

Ashantis.     See  Tshi. 

Assamese.  Natives  of  Assam,  between  India 
and  Burma,  belonging  to  the  Hindu  stock  of  the 
Aryan  family. 

Assinaboins.     See  Siouan. 

Assyrians.  One  of  the  main  branches  of  the 
Semitic  family.  The  Assyrians  founded  a  great 
emjMre  in  the  northern  part  of  Mesopotamia,  of 
which  Nineveh  was  the  capital,  and  afterwards 
concjuered  the  older  Babylonian  state  (710  b.c.) 
and  Egypt  (671  B.C.),  thus  forming  the  first 
world-empire  known  to  history.  Within  a  century 
.Assyria  had  become  a  Median  province,  and  its 
people  ceased  to  have  an  independent  existence. 

Athabascan  or  Tinncy.  A  group  of  North 
American  Indian  tribes,  formerly  inhabiting 
Alaska  and  the  greatest  part  of  Canada.  It  in- 
cludes the  Apaches,  Chippewayans,  Hupas, 
Kutchins,  Navajos,  Tacullis,  and  tlmbquas. 

Athenians.  The  most  important  race  of 
ancient  Greece,  whose  city  of  Athens  was  the 
earliest  centre  of  civilisation  in  the  historical 
age  of  Europe. 

Australians.  The  aborigines  of  Australia,  a 
branch  of  the  Oceanic  Negro  family.  Their 
numerous  tribes  present  a  general  uniformity  of 
physical  and  mental  development,  under  which 
two  main  types  may  be  recognised.  The  earlier 
of  these  is  probably  that  shown  by  the  extinct 
Tasmanians  (q.v.),  one    of    the    lowest   races  in 


point  of  culture  yet  discovered,  who  were 
probably  still  in  the  earliest  stage  of  the  Stone 
Age.  The  other  type  was  perhaps  akin  to  the 
Dravidians  of  India,  or  to  a  very  low  Caucasic 
race.  The  Australians  are  among  the  lowest 
of  savage  races,  and  present  many  features  which 
have  thrown  light  on  the  manners,  customs  and 
beliefs  of  primitive  man. 

Australians.  White  inhabitants  of  Australia, 
mostly  of  Anglo-Saxon  descent. 

Austrians.  Inhabitants  of  the  Austrian  em- 
pire, including  a  great  diversity  of  races.  The 
name  is  properly  applied  only  to  the  German- 
speaking  people,  of  High-German  Teutonic 
stock,  who  predominate  in  Austria  proper. 

Auvergnats.  Natives  of  Auvergne,  in  Central 
France.  A  short,  sturdy,  dark,  round-skulled 
race,  formerly  regarded  as  typical  Aryan  Celts, 
but  possibly  descended  from  an  older  non-Aryan 
people.   Much  employed  in  Paris  as  porters. 

Avars.     See  Lesghians. 

Avars.  A  Tartar  tribe,  belonging  to  the  Turki 
stock  of  the  Northern  Mongolic  family,  who 
appeared  in  the  district  round  the  Caspian  Sea 
about  the  fourth  century,  and  later  made 
predatory  raids  over  a  large  part  of  Eastern 
Europe.  They  were  subdued  by  Charlemagne, 
and  disappeared  from  history  in  the  ninth  cen- 
tury. They  seem  to  have  been  closely  allied  to 
the  Huns,  whom  they  resembled  in  physical 
characteristics  and  warlike  qualities. 

Awawandias.  Bantu  Negroes  of  the  Nyassa 
plateau  in  British  Central  Africa. 

Aymaras.  A  race  of  South  American  Indians 
in  Bolivia,  probably  related  to  the  Incas  (q.v.) 
and  perhaps  their  ancestors. 

Azandeh,  or  Niam-Niam.  Sudanese  Negroes 
of  the  Welle  group.    Notorious  cannibals. 

Aztecs.  The  dominant  Indian  race  in  Mexico 
at  the  arrival  of  the  Spanish  invaders.  They  en- 
tered the  country  about  the  end  of  the  thirteenth 
century,  and  founded  the  city  of  Mexico  in  1325. 
Around  it  they  reared  a  remarkable  civilisation 
and  a  sanguinary  religion.  They  were  warlike, 
ferocious  and  cruel,  but  had  a  considerable 
aptitude  for  the  arts  of  peace.  Their  empire  was 
destroyed  by  Cortes  in  1521,  and  annexed  to 
Spain.  Every  trace  of  Aztec  nationality  was 
suppressed,  but  their  name  still  lingers  among 
the  Nahuan  Indians,  and  their  blood  is  mixed 
with  that  of  the  conquerors.  Many  attempts 
have  been  made  to  find  an  Old  World  origin  for 
Mexican  culture,  but  they  are  not  convincing. 

Babylonians.  The  Semitic  race  which  founded 
one  of  the  greatest  of  ancient  civilisations 
in  the  rich  alluvial  plains  of  Chalda-a  and  on 
the  arid  plateau  of  Mesopotamia.  Their  history 
is  too  long  to  summarise  here,  but  it  may  be 
stated  that  the  Semitic  peoples,  variously  known 
as  Babylonians,  Chalda^ans,  Elamites,  Kledians, 
and  Assyrians,  invaded  and  dispossessed  at 
different  times  the  primitive  Mongolic  race  of 
Akkads  (q.v.).  Their  earliest  settlement  seems  to 
have  been  at  Ur  of  the  Chaldees,  on  the  right 
bank  of  the  Euphrates.  Babylon  and  Nineveh 
were  afterwards  the  seats  of  the  Babylonian  and 
Assyrian  powers,  whilst  Elamite  and  Median 
conquerors  intervened  at  various  times.  These 
powerful  Semitic  races  made  great  advances  in 
art,  science,  literature,  religion,  and  social  policy. 
Their  first  incursion,  probably  from  Arabia, 
into  the  Euphrates  Valley  dates  back  to  about 
3800  B.C. 

321 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Baggaras.  A  fierce  and  warlike  race  settled 
in  the  Aiiglo-Egj'ptian  Sudan,  and  formerly 
dominant  under  the  Mahdi. 

Baghirmis.     See  Lake  Chad  Group. 
Bakairi.     See  Caries. 

Bakatla,  Bakwena.  Bantu  Negroes  of 
Bechuana  stock. 

Bakwiri.  Bantu  Negroes  settled  in  the  Came- 
roon,s. 

Balinese.  A  Malayan  race  of  the  East  Indian 
Archipelago. 

Balolo.  Bantu  Negroes  of  the  Middle  Congo  ; 
one  of  the  finest  negro  races. 

Balong.     Bantu  Negroes  of  West  Africa. 
Baltis.     A    hardy    Tibetan     race,    inhabiting 
the  Alpine  valley  of  the  Upper  Indus. 

Baluba,  or  Basonge.  A  dominant  Bantu  Negro 
race  of  the  Kassai  basin  in  Equatorial  Africa. 

Baluchis,  or  Beluchis.  Natives  of  Baluchistan, 
south  of  Afghanistan,  of  Iranian  (.\ryan)  descent, 
with  a  mingling  of  Tartar  (Mongolic)  blood. 
The  dominant  race  of  the  country  is  the  Brahui, 
aboriginals  who  are  probably  of  Mongolic  descent, 
allied  to  the  Dra vidians  (q.v.)  of  India.  The 
lirahui  arc  of  Mongolic  type,  short,  with  round 
flat  faces,  hospitable  and  generous.  They  are 
the  more  settled  portion  of  the  inhabitants. 
The  Baluchis  are  chiefly  nomads,  taller,  with 
more  Aryan  features,  a  warlike  and  predatory 
people. 

Balunda.  Bantu  Negroes  of  South  Central 
Africa,  occupying  the  Congo-Zambesi  divide. 

Bamangwato.  Bantu  Negroes  of  north  Be- 
chuanaland  ;    Khama's  semi-civilised  people. 

Bambaras.     See    Mandingan. 

Banandi.  Bantu  Negroes  of  apish  type,  in 
the  Seniliki  forests. 

Bangalas.  Bantu  Negroes  of  Middle  Congo, 
on  the  I'bangi  river. 

Bantus.  One  of  the  two  subdivisions  of  the 
African  Negro  family  of  Ethiopic  Man,  occupy- 
ing the  southern  half  of  the  African  continent, 
south  of  the  Cameroons  and  Albert  Nyanza. 
.\  Negro  race  modified  from  the  Sudanese  type 
by  Hamite  influences. 

Banyai.  Bantu  Negroes,  south  of  the  Middle 
Zambesi. 

Banyoro.     See  Wanvoro. 

Bapedi.     Bantu  Negroes  of  Bechuana  stock. 

Bareas.  Smlanese  Negroes  inhabiting  the 
Abyssinian  slopes. 

Barguzins.      See  Buriats. 

Baris.     See  Nilitic  Group. 

Barolongs.  Bantu  Negroes  of  Bechuana  stock, 
between  Wyburg  and  Molopo  river.  Mafeking  is 
their  capital. 

Barotse.  Bantu  Negroes  of  Bechuana  stock, 
about  headwaters  of  Molopo  river. 

Barres.  South  .\mcrican  Indians  in  Venezuela 
and  Guiana. 

kBases.  Sudanese  Negroes  of  Abyssinian  slopes, 
a  very  low  negroid  type. 

Bashkirs.  \  branch  of  the  Turki  stock  of  the 
NortiiiTu  Mongolic  family.  They  are  first  men- 
tioned in  the  tenth  century  as  a  warlike  and 
idolatrous  race,  noted  for  their  large,  round, 
short  heads,  from  which  their  name  is  derived. 
They  now  inhabit  the  Orenberg  and  Perm 
districts  of  Russia,  on  the  western  slopes  of  the 
l^ral.  Some  are  settled  agriculturists,  others 
pastf)ral  nomads. 

Bashukulumbwe.  Bantu  Negroes  of  Kafue 
basin  in  Zambesia. 

322 


Basimba  or  Cimbebas.     Aboriginal  Negroes  of 
South  Angola  ;    a  low  Bantu  type,  or  possibly 
Negrito,  allied  to  Bushmen. 
Basonge.     See  Baluba. 

Basques.  One  of  the  few  non-Aryan  races  still 
existing  in  Europe,  where  they  inhabit  the  dis- 
tricts on  the  French  and  Spanish  sides  of  the 
Western  Pyrenees.  They  originally  occupied 
a  much  wider  area  in  this  neighbourhood,  and 
preserve  their  ancient  costume  and  language. 
Their  ethnological  affinities  are  still  in  dispute, 
but  the  best  opinion  is  that  they  represent  the 
ancient  Iberians  (q.v.),  a  Western  Hamitic  race, 
related  to  the  Berbers  of  North  .\frica  on  the  one 
hand  and  to  the  Picts  of  Scotland  and  the  ancient 
Irish  on  the  other.  Probably  they  have  occupied 
their  present  home  since  Neolithic  times.  They 
are  mainly  agriculturists,  with  all  the  rustic  vir- 
tues, and  make  excellent  sokliers  and  servants. 
Bassas.  See  Liberian  Group. 
Bastaards.  S?e  Griquas. 
Bastarnae.     See  Goths. 

Basutos.  The  most  civilised  race  of  Bantu 
Negroes,  of  the  Bechuana  stock,  who  inhabit 
the  rugged  uplands  of  Basutoland,  a  British 
Crown  Colony.  They  have  long  been  subjected 
to  European  and  Christian  influence,  under 
which  they  have  presented  the  sole  instance 
of  a  pure  negro  community,  which  has  made 
itself  self-supporting  and  approximately  civilised. 
They  have  succeeded  in  assimilating  Western 
culture,  and  their  little  State — which  always  pre- 
served its  independence  against  other  natives  and 
Boers — is  a  very  flourishing  example  of  what 
the  negro  can  do  under  favourable  auspices. 
Batanga.  Bantu  Negroes  of  the  Cameroons. 
Batavi.  An  ancient  German  race  inhabiting 
the  island  formed  by  the  Meuse  and  an  arm  of 
the  Rhine.     Ancestors  of  the  modern  Dutch. 

Bateke.  Bantu  Negroes  of  Congo,  above 
Stanley  Pool. 

Batjans.     See  Indonesian. 
Batlapi.     Bantu  Negroes  of  Bechuana  stock, 
near  \'ryburg. 

Batonga  or  Batoka.  Bantu  Negroes  of 
Zambesia,   Manicaland  and   Tongaland. 

Battaks.  A  pre-Malay  race  of  North  Sumatra, 
probably   allietl   to  the   Polynesians  {q.v.). 

Batwas.  .\  pygmy  (q.v.)  Negrito  race  south 
of  Congo,  allied  to  Bushmen. 

Batwanas.  Bantu  Negroes  of  North  Bcchuana- 
lan.l. 

Bavarians.  A  branch  of  the  High  German 
st(jck  o{  the  Teutonic  family,  in  Bavaiia. 

Bayansis.  Bantu  Negroes  of  MidiUe  Congo, 
on   Kwa   KiviT.     Strong  negro  element. 

Bechuanas.  A  main  stock  of  Bantu  Negroes, 
occupying  what  is  known  as  British  Bechuana- 
land.  The  name  is  of  European  origin,  and  has 
no  native  significance  as  applied  to  the  race, 
but  is  a  convenient  general  term. 

Bedawi  or  Bedouins.  Nomadic  Arabs  (q.v.) 
who  inhabit  the  deserts  of  Arabia  and  the 
neighbouring  countries,  and  live  by  stock- 
breeding  and  robbery.  Their  breed  of  horses  is 
world-famous.  They  are  independent,  chivalrous 
and  hospitable.  They  correspond  to  the  Biblical 
Ishmaelites,  whose  race  and  customs  they  pre- 
serve practically  unchanged. 

Bejas.  A  race  of  Eastern  Hamitcs,  of  splendid 
jihysiiiue,  occupying  the  eastern  seaboard  of 
Africa  north  of  Massowah,  including  Bisharis, 
Hadendowas,  and  other  tribes, 


AN    ALPHABET    OF    THE    WORLD'S    RACES 


Belgae.  The  northernmost  of  the  three  races 
occupyin-j  Gaul  in  Ca'sar's  time,  probably  of  Low 
German  stock,  with  perhaps  a  Celtic  element. 

Belgians.  The  inhabitants  of  Belgium, 
formerly  the  Spanish  or  Austrian  Netherlands, 
of  very  mixed  origin.  The  natives  are  either 
Flemings  of  Teutonic  stock,  or  Celtic  Walloons 
iq.v.).  Mingled  with  these  arc  large  numbers  of 
German,  French  and  Dutch  immigrants ;  and 
constant  crossing  of  blood  has  tended  to  produce 
a  truly  Belgian  type  out  of  all  these  fluctuating 
elements.  They  are  among  the  most  patient 
and  productive  of  agriculturists,  mostly  small 
proprietors  ;  and  they  possess  flourishing 
manufactures  and  a  rich  commerce  through  the 
great  port  of  Antwerp 

Beluchis.     See  Baluchis. 

Bengalis.  The  majority  of  the  natives  of 
Bengal  belong  to  the  Hindu  stock  of  the  Aryan 
family,  which  was  probably  the  first  to  develop 
a  true  civilisation  and  a  great  literature  (in  the 
ancient  Sanscrit  tongue).  The  typical  Bengali 
is  quick-witted,  versatile,  and  successful  in  the 
arts  of  peace,  but  not  warlike — though  the  native 
army  of  the  old  East  Indian  Company  was 
largely  recruited  from  Bengal.  The  Bengali 
Babu,  of  the  professional  or  lower  official  class, 
is  well  known. 

Beluchis.     See  Baluchis. 

Benin.     See  Nigerian  Group. 

Berbers.  A  Western  Hamitic  race  occupy- 
ing the  Atlas  Mountains  and  the  Northern 
Sahara,  of  predatory  and  warlike  habits.  They 
arc  known  in  Algeria  as  Kabylcs,  and  in  Sahara 
as  Tuaregs.  Largely  dark-haired  and  swarthy, 
with  prominent  ■  noses,  they  belong  to  the 
Melanochroid  branch  of  Caucasic  Man.  They 
correspond  to  the  ancient  Numidians. 

Betsimisarakas.  One  of  the  three  main 
divisions  of  the  Malagasy,  or  Malayo-African 
race  which  inhabits  Madagascar.  They  occupy 
the  east  coast. 

Bhils.  Primitive  and  still  wild  non-Arvan 
inhabitants  of  Central  India,  of  Kolarian 
family  [q-v.). 

Bisharis.     See  Bejas. 

Blackfoot  Indians.     See  Algoxouian. 

Bceotians.  A  branch  of  the  ^olian  race  in 
ancient  (ireece.  The  Boeotians  were  supposed  to 
be  peculiarly  dull,  and  were  the  typical  rustic 
clowns  of  Greek  literature. 

Boers.  White  inhabitants  of  Cape  Colony, 
the  Tiansvaal,  and  the  Orange  River  Colony, 
mainly  of  Dutch  descent,  with  a  French  Hugue- 
not clement  and  a  sprinkling  of  Negro  blood. 
They  were  the  original  colonists  of  South  Africa, 
which  they  entered  in  1652  A  race  of  farmers 
(Boer  is  derived  from  the  Dutch  boor,  peasant), 
they  also  proved  themselves  to  be  hardy  pioneers 
and  admirable,  though  not  at  all  romantic, 
fighters,  learning  in  long  native  wars  the  arts  of 
strategy,  which  they  exercised  so  well  against 
the  English  in  the  South  .\frican  War  of  1899- 
1902.  They  have  now  accepted  the  Enghsh 
rule,  and  promise  to  be  among  our  most  flourish- 
ing African  subjects. 

Bohemians.     See  Czech. 

Bolivians.  White  natives  of  Bolivia  in  South 
America,  of  Spanish  descent,  with  a  considerable 
admixture  of  Indian  blood. 

Bongos.     See  Nii.itic  Group. 

Botocudos.  South  American  Indians  on 
eastern  seaboard  of  Brazil. 


Brahui.     See  Baluchis. 

Brazilians.  White  natives  of  Brazil,  mainly  of 
Portugutse  descent,  but  with  a  considerable 
admixture,  in  many  districts,  of  Indian  and 
negro  blood. 

Bretons.  Natives  of  Brittany,  descended  from 
a  short,  round-headed,  dark  race,  generally 
called  Celtic,  l)ut  perhaps  pre-Aryan. 

Bribris.  South  American  Indians  of  Costa 
Rica. 

Britons,  (i)  The  ancient  Britons  were  a 
Celtic  race,  whose  remnants  are  still  to  be  found 
in  the  Welsh  (q.v.).  They  attained  a  consider- 
able degree  of  civilisation  under  the  Roman  con- 
querors, and  adopted  Christianity  The  Anglo- 
Saxon  conquest  of  Britain  drove  most  of  them 
back  into  Wales,  Cornwall,  and  other  outlying 
portions  of  the  island,  whilst  the  remainder 
were  either  destroyed  or  assimilatctl.  (2)  In 
the  wide  modern  sense,  Britons  are  the  white 
citizens  of  the  British  Empire. 

Bugis  or  Buginese.  Natives  of  Boni  in 
Celebes  ;    a  primitive  Malay  race. 

Bulalas.     See  Lake  Chad  Group. 

Bulgars.  A  branch  of  the  Finns  {q.v.),  who 
were  originallv  settled  on  the  banks  of  the  Volga. 
In  the  sixth  century  they  crossed  the  Danube 
and  conquered  the  modern  Bulgaria,  then 
occupied  by  the  Slavonic  Slovenians  (q.v.). 
A  speedy  fusion  took  place  between  the  Slove- 
nians and  the  Bulgars,  who  adopted  the  language 
and  customs  of  the  former,  and  rose  to  greatness 
as  a  Slav  power.  In  the  ninth  and  tenth  centuries 
they  ruled  the  greater  part  of  the  Balkan 
Peninsula,  and  warred  successfully  with  the 
Byzantine  Empire,  which,  however,  subjected 
them  in  1019  under  Basil  II.,  "  the  slayer  of  the 
Bulgarians."  Later  they  passed  imder  the 
Turkish  rule,  and  ceased  to  have  an  independent 
national  existence  down  to  the  nineteenth 
century. 

Bulgarians.  Inhabitants  of  the  modern 
Balkan  state  of  Bulgaria,  descended  from  the 
Bulgars  (q.v.)  with  considerable  admixtures  of 
Greek  and  Turkish  blood. 

Bulloms.     See  Temne  Group. 

Burgundians.  An  ancient  people  of  Teutonic 
race  (High  German),  who  were  originally  settled 
between  the  Oder  and  Vistula.  In  the  fifth 
century  they  invaded  Gaul,  where  they  formed 
the  first  kingdom  of  Burgundy,  between  the 
Aar  and  the  Rhone.  There  were  many  later 
Burgundian  kingdoms  and  duchies,  of  which  the 
last  and  most  famous  was  that  of  Charles  the 
Bold,  annexed  to  France  in  1477-  The  Burgun- 
dians are  now  French  subjects,  but  still  show 
traces  of  their  Teutonic  origin. 

Buriats.  The  Western  or  Siberian  branch  of 
the  Mongol  stock  of  the  Northern  Mongolic 
family.  They  occupy  the  vicinity  of  Lake 
Baikal.  The  majority  are  nomad  pastors,  but 
some  have  taken  to  agriculture.  A  peace-loving, 
but  lazy  and  drunken  people ;  they  include 
various  tribes,  such  as  the  Barguzins,  Selengese, 
Idinese,  Kudaras  and  Olkhonese. 

Burmese,  or  Burmans.  A  short-statured, 
thick-set  and  flat-featured  people,  approaching 
the  Chinese  type,  the  principal  race  of  the  Indo- 
Chinese  stock  of  the  Southern  Mongolic  family. 
They  inhabit  Burma — now  a  British  possession — 
and  are  excitable,  turbulent,  and  given  to 
dacoity,  or  highway  robbery.    They  make  good 

323 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


farmers  and  shopkeepers,  but  are  not  warlike 
or  methodical. 

Burus.     See  Indonesians. 

Bushmen.  A  nomadic  Negro  race  of  South 
Africa,  who  stand  at  the  lowest  stage  of  human 
culture.  They  are  probably  the  aborigines  of 
South  Africa,  where  they  have  been  dispossessed 
by  Hottentots  and  Bantus  from  the  north. 
They  cire  thin  and  wiry,  of  small  stature,  not 
unlike  the  Hottentots  in  colour  and  features. 
They  live  by  hunting,  and  possess  a  curious 
mythology.  Their  artistic  powers,  comparable 
to  those  of  Palaeolithic  Man,  are  shown  in  the 
remarkable  rock-drawings  on  the  walls  of  their 
caves. 

Calchaquis.  South  American  Indians,  in 
Plate  River  district. 

C&mboj&ns.  Natives  of  Cambodia,  Mongoloid 
approaching  Caucasic  type 

C&naanites.  One  of  the  main  blanches  of  the 
great  Semitic  family,  inhabiting  Palestine  and 
the  Mauritanian  sea-coast  in  ancient  times, 
including  Jews,  Phoenicians,  Carthaginians, 
Moabites,  Amorites,  Idumaeans  and  Philistines 
iq.v.).  A  fierce  and  warlike  people,  with  a 
remarkable  genius  for  religion,  which  has  greatly 
influenced  the  modern  world. 

Canadians.  White  natives  of  Canada,  of 
mixed  French  and  Anglo-Saxon  descent. 

Caribs.  South  American  Indians,  formerly 
occupying  the  West  Indian  Islands,  and  now  the 
shores  of  the  Caribbean  Sea,  including  Macusi, 
Bakairi,  Akawai,  Arecuna,  and  Rucuyenne 
tribes.  They  are  strongly  built,  warlike  and 
fierce,  but  honourable.  The  term  cannibal  is 
supposed  to  be  a  corruption  of  their  name 
based  on  their  habits. 

Carthaginians.  Natives  of  one  of  the  great 
empires  of  the  ancient  world,  which  was  founded 
at  Carthage,  near  the  modern  Bizerta,  by 
Phoenician  colonists  in  the  ninth  century  B.C., 
and  was  destroyed  by  Rome  in  146  b.c.  Carthage 
was  the  great  rival  of  Rome  as  a  Mediterranean 
power.  Its  inhabitants  belonged  to  the  Canaanite 
stock  of  the  Semitic  family,  and  were  a  nation 
of  traders,  cruel  and  gloomy  in  temperament, 
worshippers  of  Moloch  with  human  .sacrifices. 
Though  in  Hannibal  they  produced  one  of  the 
greatest  of  generals,  they  were  not  warlike,  and 
trusted  chiefly  to  mercenaries,  wherefore  they  fell. 

Catalans.  Natives  of  North-east  Spain,  mo.stly 
of  Gothic  descent,  and  still  distinct  from  other 
Spaniards  in  language  and  costume.  Honest  and 
enterprising,  turbulent,  and  intensely  devoted  to 
liberty. 

Caucasians.  One  of  the  families  of  Caucasic 
Man,  inhabiting  the  mountainous  region  of  the 
Caucasus,  and  divided  into  southern, western,  and 
eastern  branches  [see  Georgians,  Circassians, 
Chechenzes,  Lesghians].  They  include  a  great 
number  of  different  tribes,  who  seem  to  have 
settled  there  from  the  earliest  historical  times. 
Some  of  these,  the  Melanochroid  highlanders, 
like  the  Georgians,  Circassians,   and  Lesghians, 

E resent  an  almost  ideal  standard  of  physical 
eauty,  whilst  others  are  squat  and  ungainly. 
Some  ethnologists  see  in  the  Caucasus  the 
primitive  home  of  the  Aryan  family,  from  whom 
the  Caucasians  would,  on  this  view,  be  an  off- 
shoot. The  Ossets  (q.v.)  are  certainly  Aryan. 
The  Caucasians  are  very  warlike,  and  struggled 
till  quite  recently  with  success  against  the 
Russian  domination. 

324 


Caucasic.  One  of  the  four  great  divisions  of 
the  human  race.  Type,  white-skinned,  square- 
jawed  (orthognathous),  skull  between  broad  and 
long  (mesocephalic),  hair  soft,  straight,  or  wavy  ; 
in  intelligence,  enterprise,  and  civilisation,  much 
superior  to  other  divisions. 

Cayugas.     See  Iroquoian. 

Celts.     See  Kelts. 

Chakhars.  A  branch  of  Eastern  Mongols, 
settled  on  the  south-east  boundary  of  the  Desert 
of  Gobi. 

Chaldseans.     See  Babylonians. 

Chamorros.  Aborigines  of  the  Ladrone 
Islands,  so  named  from  their  thievish  propensi- 
ties. A  branch  of  the  Oceanic  Mongolic  family, 
probably  allied  to  the  Formosans  {q.v.). 

Chancas.     See  Incas. 

Chaudors.  A  nomad  tribe  inhabiting  the 
steppes  east  of  the  Caspian  and  south  of  the 
Oxus.     See  Turkomans. 

Chapogirs.     See  Tunguses. 

Charruas.  An  extinct  race  of  South  American 
Indians  in  South  Brazil,  peculiar  for  their 
extremely  black  colour  with  lank  hair. 

Chechenzes.  A  branch  of  the  Eastern  stock 
of  the  Caucasian  family,  inhabiting  the  northern 
slopes  of  the  Eastern  Caucasus.  Their  chief 
tribes  are  Ingushis,  Kishis,  and  Tushis. 

Cheremisses.     See  Finns. 

Cherokees.  A  brave  and  warlike  tribe  of 
North  American  Indians.     See  Iroquoian. 

Cheyennes.     See  Algonquian. 

Chibchas.  South  American  Indians  of  Bogota. 

Chichimecs.     See  Nahuans. 

Chickasaws.     See  Muskhogeans. 

Chilians.  White  natives  of  Chili,  of  Spanish 
descent,  with  a  mixture  of  Araucanian  Indian 
blood. 

Chinese.  One  of  the  most  numerous  races  of 
the  world,  inhabiting  the  Chinese  Empire.  They 
are  a  stock  of  the  Southern  Mongolic  family,  and 
it  is  thought  by  some  ethnologists  that  they  are 
descended  from  the  Mongolic  Akkads  {q.v.)  of 
Mesopotamia.  There  is  a  remarkable  uniformity 
in  the  physical  type  presented  by  the  Chinese  in 
all  climates  and  environments  ;  they  are  the 
most  homogeneous  of  great  peoples.  They  are 
yellow-skinned,  short  in  stature,  with  obliquely 
set  eyes,  high  cheek-bones,  long  skulls,  and  broad 
faces,  with  slight  prognathism.  They  possess 
an  ancient  and  highly  organised  civilisation, 
which  is  characterised  by  its  conservatism  and 
slowness  to  accept  new  ideas — so  different  in  this 
from  the  Japanese.  The  Chinese  are  naturally 
frugal,  industrious,  and  patient  ;  they  are 
excellent  agriculturists,  and  very  gregarious  ; 
they  despise  war,  Ijut  make  excellent  soldiers 
when  drilled  by  Europeans  or  Japanese.  They 
are  eminently  literary,  and  have  a  high  system 
of  morality.  There  are  many  local  varieties, 
such  as  the  Puntis  of  the  Canton  districts,  the 
Hakkas  of  Swatow,  the  Hoklas  of  Fohkien,  the 
Dungans  {q.v.).  which  need  not  be  farther 
particularised. 

Chinooks.  A  nearly  extinct  tribe  of  North 
American  Indians  on  the  Columbia  River,  on 
whose  language  is  based  the  Chinook  jargon,  or 
traders'   Lingua  Franca  of  British  Columbia. 

Chins.     See  Singphos. 

Chippewayans.     See  Athabascan. 

Chiquitos.  South  American  Indians  of  Upper 
Paraguay  basin. 


AN    ALPHABET    OF    THE    WORLD'S    RACES 


Chiriguanos.  South  American  Indians  of 
Bolivia. 

Chitr&lis.  Natives  of  Chitral,  in  the  Hindu 
Khush,  rough,  hardy  hillmen,  closely  allied  to 
the  Kafirs  (q.v.)  of  Kafiristan. 

Chocos.  A  tribe  of  South  American  Indians 
of  Matto  Grosso. 

CKoktaws.     See  Muskhogean. 
Chont&ls.       Central     American     Indians     of 
Nicaragua.  , 

Chols.     See  Maya-Quiche. 
Chorasses.     See    Kalmuks. 
Chorotegans.     Central  American   Indians    of 
Nicaragua. 

Chukchis.  A  Northern  Mongohc  race  of 
North-east  Siberia,  closely  akin  to  the  American 
Eskimo  in  features  and  customs.  They  are  of 
high  character  and  very  independent,  but  at  a 
low  stage  of  civilisation,  and  live  by  reindeer- 
breeding  and  hunting.  A  branch  of  the  Chuk- 
chis, differing  mainly  in  language,  is  known  as 
the  Koryaks. 

Chunchos.     South  American  Indians  on  tribu- 
taries of  Beni  River  in  Peru. 
Cimbebas.     See  Basimba. 

Circassians,  or  Tchcrkesses.  A  race  of  Cau- 
casian mountaineers,  formerly  inhabiting  the 
Black  Sea  coast  between  Ana'pa  and  Pitzunta, 
of  high  physical  type,  who  maintained  an 
unavailing  struggle  against  Rus.sia  till  1864, 
when  their  subjugation  was  followed  by  a  whole- 
sale emigration  of  the  Circassian  tribes  to  the 
Turkish  Empire.  Allied  to  them  are  the 
Abkhasians  and    Kabards  (q.v.). 

Colombians.    White  natives  of  Colombia,   in 
Central    America,    mostly    of    Spanish    descent, 
with  an  admixture  of  Indian  and  negro  blood. 
Comanches.     See  Shoshonean. 
Conibos.     South  American  Indians  of  Peru. 
Copts.     Christian  descendants  of  the  ancient 
Egyptians  {q.v.),  of  middle  stature,  slender  limbs, 
and  pale  complexion,   who  inhabit  Egypt,  and 
preserve  the  language  and  customs  of  the  last 
period  of  ancient  Egyptian  civilisation.      They 
are  essentially  townsmen,  clerks,  or  artisans. 
Coras.     See  Opata-Pima. 
Cornish.      A  race  of    Brythonic  or   P  Celts, 
akin  to  Welsh  and  Bretons,  inhabiting  Cornwall 
in  earlier  times  ;   now  absorbed  in  English  stock. 
Their  language  became  extinct  in   seventeenth 
or    eighteenth    century.       The   crossing   of    the 
Cornish  Celts  with  Anglo-Saxons  has  given  birth 
to  a  singularly  fine  race  of  hardy  fishermen  and 
miners. 

Corsicans.  The  aborigines  of  Corsica  were 
probably  a  Western  Hamitic  race,  allied  to  the 
Ligurians  (q.v.).  They  were  followed  by  Ionian 
invaders,  and  in  turn  by  Carthaginian.  Roman, 
Vandal,  Hun,  Gothic,  Saracenic,  and  Italian 
conquerors,  each  of  whom  has  added  something 
to  the  mixture  of  blood  in  the  modern  Corsicans, 
a  turbulent,  lawless,  and  warlike  race  (now 
belonging  to  France),  whose  greatest  son  was 
Napoleon. 

Costa  Ricans.  White  natives  of  Costa  Rica, 
in  Central  America,  mostly  of  pure  Spanish 
descent. 

Crees.     See  Algonquian. 
Creek  Indians.     See  Muskhogean. 
Creoles.     Persons    born    in   past   or   present 
French,  Spanish,  or  Portuguese  colonies,  of  pure 
European  descent. 
Cretans.     An     ancient     race    of     prehistoric 


culture   [see   Mvcen^^ans]  ;     in   modern    times 
chiefly  Greek,  mixed  with  Turk. 

Croats.  Inhabitants  of  Croatia,  now  mainly  of 
Slavonic  race,  mingled  with  an  earlier  short, 
dark  race  of  non-Aryan  descent.  One  of  the 
motley  races  of  the  Austrian  Empire.  They  are 
warlike,  turbulent,  and  eager  for  independence. 

Cro-Magnon.  A  prehistoric  race  settled  in 
the  Vezere  district  of  France,  which  may  be 
taken  as  the  primitive  type  of  Caucasic  Man.  It 
is  only  known  by  a  few  skulls  and  other  relics, 
and  probably  dates  back  to  the  Glacial  Period,  c 
Crow  Indians.  See  Siouan. 
Cymry.     See  Welsh. 

Czechs,  or  Bohemians.  The  most  westerly 
branch  of  the  Slavonic  stock  of  the  Aryan 
family,  now  occupying  Bohemia,  Moravia,  and 
other  parts  of  Austria.  They  are  closely  allied 
to  the  Slovaks  of  Hungary.  They  migrated  from 
the  Upper  Vistula  district  to  the  modern  Bohemia 
in  the  fifth  century.  Long  an  independent 
kingdom,  and  a  bulwark  of  Christendom  against 
the  Turks,  Bohemia  passed  to  Austria  in  1526. 
During  the  last  century  there  has  been  a  great 
recrudescence  of  the  Czech  nationality  and 
language.  The  Czechs  as  a  race  are  very  musical 
and  artistic. 

Daflas.     A      Tibetan     race     inhabiting      the 
northern  border  of  Assam. 
Dahomans.     See  Ewe. 
Dakotas.     See  Siouan. 

Dalmatians.  A  Southern  Slavonic  race,  crossed 
with  Gothic  blood.  A  fine  race  of  hardy  seamen, 
they  manned  the  Venetian  fleets,  but  now  belong 
to  Austria. 

Damaras,  or  Hau-Khoin.     See  Hereros. 
Danakils,    or    Afars.       An    Eastern    Hamitic 
race   settled   in    the  vicinity  of  Obock,  between 
Abyssinia  and  the   Red  Sea.     They  are  nomad 
pastors  and  fishermen,  well-built,  and  slender. 

Danes.  Natives  of  Denmark,  belonging  to 
the  Scandinavian  stock  of  the  Aryan  family. 
Denmark  was  originally  inhabited  by  the  Angles, 
Saxons,  and  Jutes,  who  colonised  England.  On 
their  departure,  the  Danes  from  Zealand  settled 
on  the  deserted  lands,  and  there  reared  the 
kingdom  which  still  exists.  The  early  Danes 
were  brave  warriors  and  skilled  seamen,  who  for 
a  time  ruled  Saxon  England  under  Canute. 
Their  descendants,  of  comparatively  pure  blood, 
preserve  these  characteristics,  and  are  also 
industrious  agriculturists. 

Dards.     A  warlike  and  hardy  race  of  Aryan 
descent,    inhabiting    the    mountainous    country 
around   Gilgit,    in    North-west    India,   of  whom 
the  Hunzas  and  Nagars  are  the  chief  tribes. 
Dargos.     See  Lesghians. 
Delawares.     A   North  American  Indian  race 
with    whom    William    Penn    dealt   in    the    17th 
century:  now  fairly  civilised.     See  Algonquian. 
Didos.     See  Lesghians. 
Dinkas.     See  Nilitic  Group. 
Dogras.     An    Aryan    race    in    the     Punjab, 
between  the  Chinab  and  the  Ravi,  who  contribute 
excellent  soldiers  to  the  British  Native  Army. 
Dorians.     See  Hellenes. 

Dravidas,  or  Dravidians.  Indigenous  non- 
Aryan  inhabitants  of  South  India,  including 
the  Telingas  or  Telugu  of  the  Nizam's  Dominions, 
the  Tamils  of  Karnatic  and  Ceylon,  the  Kanarese 
of  Mysore,  the  Malayalim  of  Malabar  Coast, 
those  wild  hunters  the  Gonds  of  Vindhya  Hills, 
the  Sinhalese  of  Ceylon,  and  perhaps  the  Veddahs, 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


iq.v.).  A  Mongoloid  race  originally,  which  has 
been  assimilated  to  the  Caucasic  type  by  long 
intermixture  of  blood. 

Druses.  A  brave,  handsome  and  industrious 
white  race,  who  have  been  settled  in  the  Lebanon 
district  of  Syria  for  at  least  800  years,  and 
owe  their  unity  to  the  possession  of  a  special 
religion.  Their  origin  is  uncertain,  but  they 
are  probably  of  a  mixed  stock,  to  which  Arabs, 
Kurds,  and  Persians  have  all  contributed. 
They  are  fair-haired  and  of  light  complexion. 
They  are  very  warlike,  have  always  preserved 
their  independence  against  the  Turks,  and  are 
the  inveterate  enemies  of  the  Maronites  (q.v.). 

Dungans.  Southern  Mongolic  inhabitants  of 
Zungaria,  between  Tian-Shan  and  Altai.  Allied 
to  Chinese  {q.v.). 

Durbats.     See  Kalmuks. 

Duranis.     See   Afghans. 

Dyaks.  The  aborigines  of  Borneo,  probably 
akin  to  the  Malays  (q.v.),  whom  they  resemble 
physically,  though  of  greater  average  stature. 
They  are  active  and  warlike,  and  formerly  in- 
dulged in  the  practice  of  head-hunting,  now 
dying  out.  The  Sea-Dyaks  were  bold  and 
inveterate  pirates.  They  possess  a  consider- 
able degree  of  indigenous  civilisation,  and  their 
moral  character  is  very  fine. 

Easter  Islandsrs.  (i)  See  Polynesians. 
(2)  Easter  Island  once  possessed  an  older 
race  of  inhabitants,  now  extinct,  who  have  left 
very  remarkable  traces  in  the  shape  of  numerous 
colossal  statues,  thin-lipped  and  disdainful, 
standing  on  platforms  of  Cyclopean  masonry, 
as  well  as  many  stone  houses  with  thick  walls, 
painted  on  the  inside.  Nothing  farther  is  known 
of  their  race  or  history. 

Ecuadorians.  White  natives  of  Ecuador,  in 
South  America,  of  S])anish  descent  ;  noted  for 
their  laziness  and  political  instability. 

Edomites.     See  Idum^ans. 

Egbas.     See  Yorub.-^s. 

Egyptians,  (i)  The  ancient  inhabitants  of 
Egypt — known  to  them  as  Khcm,  the  Biblical 
Mizraim — who  reared  one  of  the  oldest  and  most 
important  civilised  states  of  the  ancient  world. 
The  aborigines  of  Egypt  were  apparently  a 
Palaeolithic  branch  of  Ethiopic  Man,  allied  to  the 
modern  Bushmen.  They  were  dispossessed  and 
practically  exterminated,  probably  about  7000 
B.C.,  by  a  slender,  fair-skinned  race  of  European 
type,  belonging  to  the  Hamitic  family,  and 
resembling  the  modern  Berbers  {q.v.)  in  many 
respects.  These  were  probably  the  same  as  the 
ancient  Libyans  {q.v.).  Later  this  race  was 
modified  by  the  introduction  of  a  Semitic  element, 
partly  from  Syria,  partly  from  the  Phoenician 
conquerors  who  founded  dynastic  rule  in  Egypt 
under  Menes,  between  5cx)o  and  4cx)o  b.c. 
Their  later  history  is  WTitten  on  their  imperish- 
able monuments,  and  need  not  be  summarised 
here.  In  later  times  the  Egyptian  racial  type 
was  modified  by  Greek  and  Roman  influence. 
The  ancient  Egyptians  were  highly  skilled  in 
agriculture  and  engineering,  warlike  but  not 
aggressive,  and  with  a  highly  developed  literature 
and  religion.  (2)  The  modern  Egyptians  are 
partly  descended  from  the  ancient  ligyptians, 
whose  racial  type  as  represented  on  the  monu- 
ments is  still  to  be  found  in  purity,  mingled  with 
Bedouin  Arabs,  Turks,  Syrians,  and  other 
races.     See  Copts  and   Fellahin. 

English.     Natives    of    England  ;     used    in    a 

326 


wider  sense  as  equivalent  to  citizens  of  the 
British  Empire  [see  Britons,  Anglo-Saxons]. 
The  English  people  are  a  Low  German  branch 
of  the  Teutonic  stock  of  the  Aryan  family,  with 
a  faint  Celtic  element  derived  from  the  primi- 
tive Britons,  a  strong  Scandinavian  element 
especially  in  the  north-east),  derived  from  the 
invading  Danes  and  Norsemen  in  the  ninth 
to  eleventh  centuries,  and  a  considerable  Norman 
element — Norse  modified  by  French  cidture. 
The  typical  Englishman  is  white-skinned  and 
'  fair-haired,  belonging  to  the  Xanthochroi,  but 
there  are  many  deviations  due  to  modifying 
influences.  The  race  is  eminently  warlike  and 
aggressive,  and  makes  the  most  successful 
colonisers  known  to  the  world. 

Eric  Indians.     See  Iroquoian. 

Erse.     See    Irish. 

Eshi-Kongo.  A  semi-civilised  race  of  Bantu 
Negroes,  belonging  to  the  ancient  Kongo  Empire, 
now  Portuguese  West  Africa. 

Eskimos,  or  Innuits.  An  Arctic  aboriginal 
race,  now  inhabiting  Greenland  and  the  northern 
coasts  of  the  American  continent.  They  are 
nomadic,  live  by  hunting  and  fishing,  and  are 
inured  to  extremes  of  cold.  They  are  very 
broad-headed,  fat,  and  of  short  stature,  with 
fiat  (juasi-Mongolic  features.  They  seem  to 
occupy  a  place  midway  between  the  North 
American  Indian  and  the  Mongolic  type,  and 
there  is  some  reason  to  suppose  that  they 
represent  a  prehistoric  Mongoloid  incursion  from 
Northern  Asia,  or  perhaps  from  Indo-Malaysia. 

Esthonians.  A  branch  of  Baltic  Finns  {q.v.) 
settled  in  Esthonia,  and  possessing  an  ancient 
ballad  literature  and  mythology. 

Ethiopians.  An  ancient  Berber  tribe,  settled 
in  Egypt  at  least  5,000  years  ago, now  represented 
by  the  fair  Berbers  of  Rlauritania.  Homer  called 
them  "  blameless,"  because  he  knew  so  little 
about  them.     See  Nubians. 

Ethiopic.  One  of  the  four  great  divisions  of 
the  human  race,  occupying  Africa,  Australia, 
and  many  islands  of  the  Eastern  Ocean.  Its 
members  are  typically  black-skinned  and  woolly 
haired,  with  projecting  jaws  and  broad  skulls. 

Etruscans.  An  ancient  Italian  people,  in- 
habiting Etruria  in  North  Italy  in  pre-Roman 
times.  They  probably  consisted  of  an  aboriginal 
Pclasgian  (g.v.)  race,  modified  by  a  dominant 
race  of  invaders,  who  may  have  been  of  Mongolic 
type,  or  perhaps  akin  to  the  Hittitcs  {q.v.). 
The  Etruscans  may  be  classed  as  Hamitic. 
They  had  a  distinctive  civilisation,  and  made 
great  progress  in  art,  of  which  many  monuments 
remain.  The  Etruscan  confederation,  of  which 
W'ii  was  the  chief  city,  long  warred  with  the 
rising  power  of  Rome,  under  whose  dominion  it 
fell  in  the  fourth  century  B.C.  Families  of  un- 
doubted Etruscan  descent  are  still  found  in 
North    Italy. 

Europeans.    Natives  of  Europe,  mainly  Aryan. 

Ewe.  A  group  of  Sudanese  Negro  tril)es  -of 
Guinea  Coast.  The  best  known  are  the  Daho- 
mans,  or  natives  of  the  ancient  kingdom  of 
Dahomey,  on  the  Slave  Coast.  Of  small  stature, 
but  robust  and  warlike,  they  are  noted  for  their 
great  human  sacrifices  and  their  employment  of 
female  warriors  or  "  Amazons."  Now  under 
French  rule.      The  Togos  are  also  an  Ewe  tribe. 

Fans.  A  race  of  powerful  and  aggressive 
warriors,  who  intruded  into  Gaboon -Ogoway 
district    about    the    middle    of    the    nineteenth 


327 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


century  ;  possibly  related  to  Azandeh  or  Fulahs 
iqv.).  jCannibals,  but  otherwise  of  higher 
intellect  and  morality  than  the  average  Negro, 
from  whom  they  differ  in  physical  type. 

F&ntis.     See  Tshi. 

Fellahin.  The  labouring  peasantry  of  modem 
Egypt,  intlustrious  but  not  waiiike,  descendants 
of  ancient  Egyptians,  with  a  mixture  of  Syrian 
and  Arab  blood. 

Felup.  A  group  of  Sudanese  Negro  tribes  on 
Casamanza  and  Cacheo  estuaries. 

Fertits.     See  Nilitic  Group. 

Fijians.  Natives  of  Fiji,  belonging  to  the 
Melanesian  stock  of  the  Oceanic  Negro  family. 
Formerly  ferocious  cannibals,  they  are  now 
civilised. 

Filipinos.     See  Philippines. 

Fingus,  or  Ama-Fingu.  Bantu  Negroes  of 
the  Kafir  division  in  South-east  Africa,  regarded 
by  Zulus  and  Ama-Xosa  as  an  inferior  race. 

Finno-Ugrian.  A  stock  of  the  Northern 
Mongolic  family,  including  (i)  Ugrian  or  Siberian 
Finns,  of  which  the  chief  races  are  Soyots, 
Ostyaks,  Samoyedes,  Voguls,  Permian  Finns, 
Siryanians,  and  Magyars  {q.v.)  ;  (2)  European 
Finns,  divided  into  :  (a)  Volga  Finns,  (b)  Baltic 
Finns. 

Finns.  The  Finns  proper  are  the  inhabitants 
of  Finland,  between  Russia  and  Norway.  They 
are  a  Northern  Mongolic  race,  of  Finno-Ugrian 
stock,  who  are  supposed  to  have  originated 
beside  the  head  waters  of  the  Yenisei  River. 
They  entered  Finland  about  the  end  of  the 
seventh  century  and  established  themselves 
there,  being  afterwards  annexed,  first  by  Sweden 
and  then  by  Russia.  They  are  a  strong,  hardy 
race,  who  make  excellent  seamen,  with  round 
faces,  fair  hair  and  blue  eyes.  They  are  honest, 
highly  moral  and  religious,  and  possess  a  re- 
markable ballad  and  folk-tale  literature,  of 
which  the  Kalevala  is  the  chief  example.  The 
Baltic  Finns  of  allied  race  include  Esthonians, 
Karelians,  Lapps,  Livonians  and  Tavastians 
iq.v.).  The  Volga  Finns  are  another  branch  of 
the  same  people,  whose  chief  tribe  was  the 
ancient  Bulgars  {q.v.).  The  Mordvins  and  Chere- 
misses,  still  settled  on  the  banks  of  the  Volga  in 
small  communities,  belong  to  the  same  race. 

Flathead  or  Salish  Indians.  \  mixed  race 
of  North  American  Indians,  in  British  Columbia 
and    Montana. 

Flemings,  or  Flemish.  The  inhabitants  of 
Flanders,  now  divided  between  Belgium  and 
Holland,  descended  from  Belgic  tribes  settled 
there  in  Caesar's  time.  They  are  a  Low  German 
branch  of  the  Teutonic  stock.  They  are  an 
industrious  and  honest,  though  phlegmatic, 
people,  who  played  a  great  part  in  mediaeval 
commerce. 

Formosans.  Natives  of  Formosa,  of  mixed 
Malayan  and  Negrito  descent.  They  were 
divided  into  three  classes  by  the  Chinese  in- 
vaders :  the  Pepohwan,  civilised  agriculturists, 
under  Chinese  rule  ;  Sekhwan,  settled  tribes 
who  acknowledged  Chinese  rule  ;  and  Chinhwan, 
the  wild  savage  tribes  of  the  mountains,  who 
waged  unceasing  war  against  the  invaders. 
The  island  has  now  passed  under  Japanese 
dominion.  The  Formosans  in  general  approxi- 
mate to  the  Malay  type,  but  are  more  sturdily 
built. 

Fox   Indians.     See  Algonquian. 

Franks.     A  confederation  of  Germanic  tribes, 

32« 


dwelling  on  the  Middle  and  Lower  Rhine  in  the 
third  century.  They  belonged  to  the  High 
German  branch  of  the  Teutonic  stock.  In  the 
third  and  fourth  centuries  they  began  to  invade 
Gaul,  where  they  established  a  Frankish  kingdom 
under  Clovis  (48 1-5 1 1 ),  who  adopted  Christianity. 
This  later  developed  into  the  modern  State  of 
France.  The  Franks  were  a  brave  and  stalwart 
race  of  warriors,  with  blue  eyes  and  long  flowing 
hair,  well-built  and  large-limbed.  They  were  a 
nation  of  democratic  fighting  men,  who  practised 
agriculture  in  the  intervals  of  war. 

French.  The  inhabitants  of  modern  France, 
a  race  of  mixed  origin.  Among  their  ancestors 
are  the  Celtic  Gauls,  the  Teutonic  Belgae  and 
Franks,  the  Hamitic  Iberians,  the  Romans, 
and  the  Scandinavian  Normans  (q.v.).  They 
are  probably  the  quickest-witted  and  most  in- 
telligent race  of  modern  Europe.  Extremely 
warlike  and  aggressive  in  earlier  days,  they  are 
now  displaying  greater  devotion  to  the  arts  of 
peace,  especially  agriculture.  Paris  has  long 
been  the  chief  centre  of  ideas  in  Europe. 

Frisians.  A  Teutonic  race  of  Low  German 
stock,  living  between  Scheldt  and  Weser  in 
Roman  times,  now  belonging  to  the  Nether- 
lands. 

Fuegians.  Natives  of  Tierra  del  Fuego  in 
South  America,  savages  of  a  very  low  physical 
and  mental  type. 

Fulahs.  A  warlike  and  predatory  race  of 
Saharan  Hamites,  formerly  occupying  small 
communities  throughout  the  West  and  Central 
Sudan,  who  over-ran  the  native  Hausa  States 
about  1 800- 1 8 10,  and  founded  the  empire  of 
Sokoto. 

Furs.     See  Nuba  Group. 

Ga.  A  Sudanese  Negro  group  in  Guinea, 
including  Accras  and  Krobos. 

Gaels.     See  Highlanders. 

Gaikas  and  Galekas.     See  Xosas. 

Galchas.  Highlanders  of  Hindu  Kush  and 
Turkistan,  of  Iranian  descent. 

Gallegos.  Natives  of  Galicia,  in  Spain,  of 
Gothic  descent. 

Gallas.  A  branch  of  Eastern  Hamites, 
occupying  Gallaland,  south  of  Abyssinia.  The 
finest  people  in  all  Africa,  strongly  built,  of  a 
light  chocolate  colour.  They  are  distinguished 
for  their  energy  and  honesty.  They  are  divided 
into  numerous  tribes,  and  are  inveterate  foes  of 
the  Somalis. 

Gallinas.    Sudanese  Negroes  of  Sierra  Leone. 

Garamantes.  An  ancient  Hamitic  race  in- 
habiting the  neighbourhood  of  Tripoli  in  Roman 
times. 

Garhwalis.  Tibetan  natives  of  Garhwal,  on 
the  border  of  Tibet. 

Gascons.  Natives  of  Gascony,  of  Basque 
descent,  modified  by  Frank  and  French  blood. 
They  are  notorious  for  their  lively  imagination 
and  boasting  "  Gasconades." 

Gauchos.  A  mixed  race  of  Spanish  and 
Indian  descent,  admirable  horsemen,  who  are 
the  chief  herdsmen  of  Uruguay  and  the  Argentine 
He])iil)lic.     See  PuELCHES. 

Gauls.  In  Caesar's  time  the  Gauls  occupied 
the  central  part,  and  formed  the  chief  race,  of 
modern  France,  which,  after  them,  was  called 
Gaul.  They  probably  belonged  to  the  Brythonic 
division  of  the  Celtic  stock,  being  closely  allied 
to  the  ancient  Britons,  as  well  as  to  the  modern 
Welsh  and  Bretons,  who  respectively  represent 


AN    ALPHABET    OF    THE    WORLD'S    RACES 


the  remnants  of  the  primitive  Celtic  population 
of  England  and  France.  It  is  possible  that  there 
was  a  still  earlier  Celtic  element  in  France, 
corresponding  to  the  Goidclic  division  of  the 
Celtic  stock.  Mingled  with  the  Celtic  element 
in  the  Gauls  were  traces  of  the  earlier  Iberian 
and  Ligurian  aborigines  (q.v.).  The  Gauls  were 
blue-eyed,  fair-haired  and  long-headed,  in  dis- 
tinction to  the  older  dark-eyed,  black-haired, 
round-headed  type,  which  is  more  commonly 
known  as  Celtic,  but  is  probably  characteristic 
of  an  older  race.  Under  Roman  rule  the  Gauls 
acquired  a  considerable  degree  of  civilisation. 
They  were  dispossessed  in  the  decline  of  the 
empire  by  Franks,  Burgundians  and  Visigoths 
(q.v.),  but  became  in  part  ancestors  of  the 
modern  French. 

Georgians.  The  chief  race  of  the  Southern 
Caucasus,  a  fine  athletic  race  of  pure  Caucasic 
type,  noted  for  the  personal  beauty  of  its 
individuals.  The  Georgians  were  formerly  fierce 
and  warlike,  but  under  Russian  rule  have  become 
industrious  in  the  arts  of  peace.  They  are  noted 
for  a  passionate  love  of  music.  They  first  appear 
in  history  in  the  time  of  Alexander  the  Great, 
when  they  were  already  settled  in  their  moun- 
tains. The  Georgian  kingdom  had  an  independent 
existence  for  about  seven  centuries,  but  suffered 
much  from  Mongolian  and  especially  Turkish 
invasions.  Georgia  and  Circassia  furnished  the 
majority  of  white  slaves  for  Turkish  harems. 
In  1 80 1  Georgia  was  annexed  to  Russia.  Other 
important  South  Caucasian  races  are  the 
Imerians  and  the  Mingrelians,  who  closely 
resemble  the  Georgians  in  physical  characteris- 
tics, but  have  displayed  less  aptitude  for 
civilisation. 

Gepidae.     See  Goths. 

Getee.  An  ancient  race  of  Thracian  (q.v.) 
descent,  who  settled  in  Wallachia  in  the  fourth 
century  B.C.  They  were  warlike  and  turbulent, 
but  were  conquered  by  Trajan  and  incorporated 
in  the  Roman  Empire.  In  later  centuries  they 
appear  to  have  been  fused  with  the  Goths  (q.v.). 

Germans.  The  Germans  first  appear  in  history 
as  a  multitude  of  independent  and  warlike 
tribes  living  amongst  the  dense  forests  which 
stretched  in  Roman  times  from  the  Rhine  to 
the  Vistula.  They  belonged  to  the  Teutonic 
stock  of  the  Aryan  family.  They  were  a  tall  and 
vigorous  race,  with  long,  fair  hair  and  fierce 
blue  eyes,  who  delighted  in  war  and  the  chase. 
Their  democratic  social  organisation  has  greatly 
influenced  all  Teutonic  history  ;  their  love  of 
liberty  was  a  passion.  At  an  early  period  they 
were  divided  into  High  and  Low  Germans, 
differing  in  type,  according  as  they  inhabited 
the  central  and  southern  portions  of  modern 
Germany  or  the  low-lying  lands  towards  the 
North  Sea  and  the  Baltic.  The  chief  races  of  the 
former  were  the  Goths,  Franks,  Burgundians, 
Swiss,  Swabians,  Austrians  ;  of  the  latter, 
Saxons,  Angles,  Jutes,  Frisians,  Flemings, 
Batavi — from  whom  the  modern  English  and 
Dutch  are  descended,  whilst  the  High  Germans 
represent  the  modern  Germans.  These  are  a 
very  enterprising,  thorough,  and  industrious 
race,  alike  in  war  and  peace,  and  have  thus  given 
birth  to  one  of  the  greatest  Powers  of  the  modern 
world. 

Ghilzais.     See  Afghans. 

Gilyaks.  A  Siberian  Mongolia  race  of 
Saghalien. 


Gipsies.  A  nomadic  race,  which  was  first 
described  as  appearing  in  Europe  in  the  fifteenth 
century,  and  is  now  found  in  nearly  all  civilised 
countries.  At  first  they  were  believed  to  come 
from  Egypt,  and  their  name  is  a  corruption  of 
"  Egyptians."  They  have  a  dark,  tawny  skin, 
black  hair  and  eyes,  are  small-handed  and  often 
very  handsome,  and  live  by  tinkering,  basket- 
making,  fortune-telling,  and  other  arts  which 
can  be  practised  on  the  road.  Their  chief 
characteristic  is  independence  and  love  of  a 
wandering  life.  Their  origin  is  still  uncertain  ; 
though  their  language,  Romany,  is  known  to  be 
a  corrupt  dialect  of  Hindi,  which  supports  the 
older  theory  that  they  are  of  Indian  descent.  A 
later  and  well-supported  theory  is  that  they  are 
the  descendants  of  the  prehistoric  race  which 
introduced  metal-working  into  Europe.  On  this 
view  they  must  have  existed  in  Europe  from 
time  immemorial,  without  being  noticed  in 
literature.  The  gipsy  problem  still  awaits 
solution. 

Goajiris.     See  Tupi-Guarani. 

Golden  Hordes.     See  Kipchaks, 

Gonaquas.  Hottentot  Negro  half  breeds  on 
Kafirland  frontier. 

Goads.     See  Dravidas. 

Goths.  One  of  the  chief  Teutonic  races  of 
ancient  times,  who  played  a  great  part  in 
European  history  from  the  third  to  the  eighth 
century,  but  have  left  no  descendants  as  a 
distinct  race.  They  first  appear  in  history  in 
the  third  century,  as  a  confederation  of  German 
tribes  who  had  made  a  settlement  in  the  district 
north  of  the  Lower  Danube.  They  soon  split  up 
into  two  distinct  peoples,  the  East  Goths  or 
Ostrogoths,  and  the  West  Goths  or  Visigoths. 
There  was  a  third  and  unimportant  race  of 
Moesogoths,  settled  in  Moesia,  for  whom  Ulfilas 
made  his  famous  translation  of  the  Scriptures. 
The  Goths  were  extremely  warlike  and  aggres- 
sive, a  typical  race  of  German  warriors.  The 
Ostrogoths  remained  north  of  the  Danube, 
where  they  were  subjugated  for  a  time  by  the 
Huns  of  Attila.  Recovering  their  independence, 
they  invaded  Italy,  destroyed  the  Western 
Empire,  and  established  a  new  kingdom  under 
Theodoric.  This  was  conquered  by  the  Byzantine 
Narses  in  552,  after  which  the  Ostrogoths  dis- 
appear from  history.  The  Visigoths,  unwilling 
to  submit  to  the  Huns,  crossed  the  Danube  and 
settled  in  the  Roman  Empire,  where  they  fur- 
nished many  recruits  for  the  army.  In  395 
they  rebelled,  and  under  Alaric  invaded  Italy 
and  besieged  Rome.  Afterwards  they  founded 
kingdoms  in  the  south  of  Gaul  and  in  Spain, 
where  the  Visigoths  ruled  till  the  invasion  of 
the  Saracens,  and  where  their  blood  is  still  found 
incorporated  with  that  of  the  older  races.  A 
branch  of  the  Ostrogoths  which  settled  in  the 
Crimea  preserved  its  nationality  and  language 
down  to  the  sixteenth  century,  or  even 
later.  The  Bastarnas,  Gepidae,  and  perhaps  the 
Vandals  (q.v.),  were  branches  of  the  Gothic 
race. 

Greeks,  (i)  For  ancient  Greeks,  see  Hel- 
lenes. (2)  The  modern  Greeks  are  partly 
descendants  of  ancient  Greeks,  with  a  large 
admixture  of  Albanian,  Wallachian  and  Slavonic 
elements.  They  are  great  in  commerce,  but  not 
warlike. 

Griquas.  A  race  of  Hottentot-Dutch  half- 
breeds,  also  known  as  Bastaards,  in  Griqualand. 

329 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Guaicuris.  Central  American  Indians  of 
Lower  California. 

Guanches.  Aborigines  of  Canary  Islands : 
so-called  "  White  Africans,"  probably  of  Berber 
Hamitic  stock. 

Guatemalans.  White  natives  of  Guatemala, 
in  Central  America,  of  Spanish  descent. 

Guatusas.  Central  American  Indians  of  Costa 
Rica. 

Guebres.     See  Parsees. 

Gujeratis.  Natives  of  Gujerat  in  Western 
India,  Aryans  of  Hindu  stock. 

Gurkas.  The  dominant  race  of  Nepal,  who 
claim  a  Hindu  (Aryan)  origin,  but  have  probably 
acquired  a  Mongoloid  tinge  from  inter-marriages. 
They  are  of  small  stature,  yet  eminently  warlike, 
and  supply  some  of  the  best  troops  to  our  Indian 
Army. 

Gypsies.     See  Gipsies. 

Hadendowas.     See  Bejas. 

Haidas.  North  American  Indians  in  British 
Columbia. 

Hamites.  A  family  of  Caucasic  Man,  belong- 
ing to  the  Melanochroid  or  dark  type,  ranging 
in  colour  from  white  to  brown,  and  even  black  ; 
hair  soft,  straight  or  wavy  ;  skull,  medium 
(mesocephalic)  ;  square- jawed  (orthognathous)  ; 
generally  of  fine  physical  development.  Divided 
into  Eastern  Hamites — e.g.,  Somali,  and  Western 
Hamites — e.g.,  Berbers  and  Basques.  Closely 
related  to  Semites. 

Hau-Khoin.     See  Hereros. 

Hausas.  The  most  important  Sudanese  Negro 
race  of  Northern  Nigeria.  Keen  traders,  phy- 
sically well  developed,  they  make  excellent 
soldiers,  and  are  largely  utilised  for  this  purpose 
by  their  British  rulers.  The  Hausa  States  were 
over-run  by  the  Hamitic  Fulahs  (q.v.)  about 
i8{)o-i8io,  and  now  form  part  of  the  Empire 
of  Sokoto.  The  Hausa  language  is  the  common 
medium  of  commerce  in  the  Central  Sudan. 

Hawaiians.  Natives  of  Hawaii,  of  brown 
Polynesian  stock,  akin  to  Maoris.  A  remarkably 
fine  and  handsome  race,  steadily  decreasing 
since  contact  with  European  civilisation  and 
diseases.     Peculiarly  subject  to  leprosy. 

Haytians.  Natives  of  the  negro  republic  of 
Hayti,  descended  from  negro  slaves  imported 
by  the  earlier  Spanish  and  French  owners,  who 
freed  themselves  at  the  time  of  the  French 
Revolution.  The  Spanish  portion  afterwards 
formed  the  Dominican  Republic  in  the  eastern 
part  of  the  island.  Of  mixed  Bantu  and  Sudanese 
Xcgro  descent,  with  a  cross  of  white  blood. 

Hazaras.  Mountaineers  of  N.W.  Afghanistan, 
a  vigorous  and  turbulent  race  of  Mongolo-Persian 
descent,  often  troublesome  to  British  India. 

Hebrews.     See  Jews. 

Hellenes.  Inhabitants  of  ancient  Greece, 
which  they  called  Hellas.  The  Proto-Hellenes,  or 
aborigines,  were  probably  of  Pelasgian  origin, 
belonging  to  the  Western  Hamitic  family,  of 
whom  the  ancient  Cretans  and  Mycena^ans  (q.v.) 
may  represent  the  ancestral  type.  These  were 
followed  by  the  true  Hellenes — Acha;ans  or 
Argives — divided  into  three  main  branches — 
Dorians,  lonians,  and  .^olians.  Later  they  were 
divided  into  many  local  states,  such  as  Athens 
and  Sparta.  The  modern  Greeks  are  in  part 
descended  from  the  Hellenes,  crossed  with 
Albanian,  Wallachian,  and  Turkish  blood.  It  is 
to  the  Hellenes  that  we  owe  the  first  important 
developments  of  civilisation  in  Europe. 


Helveti.  Ancient  inhabitants  of  Switzerland 
in  Caesar's  time,  probably  a  German  tribe, 
from  whom  the  modern  Swiss  are  in  part  de- 
scended. 

Hereros,  or  Ovaherero.  Bantu  Negroes  inhabit- 
ing the  plains  of  Damaraland,  or  German  South- 
West  Africa.  The  Damaras  or  Hau-Khoin  are 
a  cross  between  Hereros  and  the  Hottentot 
aborigines.  A  pastoral  nation  who  migrated 
thither  about  two  centuries  ago  from  the  inland 
districts,  and  dispossessed  the  aboriginal  Hotten- 
tots, now  represented  by  the  Namas  of  Namaqua- 
land,  with  whom  they  are  perennially  at  war. 
Recently  they  rose  against  the  German  authori- 
ties, and  have  given  them  much  trouble.  A 
fine,  warlike  race. 

Highlanders.  The  Gaelic-speaking  inhabitants 
of  Northern  Scotland,  a  branch  of  the  Goidelic 
or  Q  Kelts,  also  known  as  Gaels.  They  are 
descended  from  the  ancient  Scots  [q.v.),  who 
originally  migrated  from  Ireland  in  the  fifth 
century.  One  of  the  finest  races  of  the  British 
Islands,  who  give  them  their  finest  soldiers 

Himyarites.  A  branch  of  the  Semitic  family 
("  Red  Men,"  whence  the  Red  Sea),  formerly 
occupying  Arabia  Felix  and  Abyssinia  ;  they 
form  the  main  stock  of  the  Abyssinian  race. 
They  included  the  kingdoms  of  the  Mina^ans 
and  Saba;ans,  the  latter  being  identified  bv  some 
with  the  Biblical  Sheba. 

Hindus.  A  stock  of  the  Aryan  family,  com- 
prising a  large  proportion  of  the  natives  of  India, 
described  under  the  headings  of  Kashmiris, 
Punjabis,  Rajputs,  Marathas,  Bengalis,  Sindis, 
Gujeratis,  Assamis,  etc  The  original  Hindus 
entered  India — hence  called  Hindustan — from 
the  north-west  at  some  prehistoric  time,  and 
soon  became  the  predominant  race  in  the 
peninsula. 

Hittites.  A  forgotten  but  once  mighty  people 
of  Semitic  race,  who  contested  the  entry  of  the 
Israelites  into  Canaan,  and  waged  war  with 
Egypt  and  Assyria  for  many  centuries.  Little 
is  known  about  them,  but  they  seem  to  have 
reared  a  mighty  empire  between  Lebanon  and 
the  Euphrates,  which  endured  for  more  than  a 
thousand  years,  and  was  destroyed  by  the 
Assyrian  Sargon  II.  in  717  b.c. 

Hondurans.  White  natives  of  Honduras,  of 
Spanish  descent  ;  few  in  numbers,  the  popula- 
tion being  mostly  of  mixed  blood. 

Hor-Soks.  A  primitive  Mongol-Turki  race  of 
the  Tibetan  plateau. 

Hottentots,  or  Khoi-Khoin.  The  aboriginal 
Negro  inhabitants  of  South  Africa,  which  they 
shared  with  the  Bushmen  (q.v.).  Possibly  the 
Bushmen  are  degraded  Hottentots,  or  the 
Hottentots  are  a  cross  between  the  Bantus  from 
the  north  and  the  Bushmen,  who  would  on 
this  view  be  the  true  aborigines.  The  only 
surviving  race  of  pure  Hottentots  are  the  Namas 
of  Namaqualand  :  the  Damaras,  Griquas, 
Gonaquas,  and  Koranas,  are  other  races  in  which 
Hottentot  blood  is  mixed  with  that  of  Bantu 
Negroes  or  of  Europeans  (mostly  Boers).  The 
Hottentots  are  a  distinct  branch  of  the  Negro 
family,  marked  by  extremely  long  heads  and 
high  cheek-bones,  a  brownish-yellow  com- 
plexion, with  other  physical  peculiarities  exem- 
plified in  the  so-called  "  Hottentot  Venus," 
and  also  found  in  the  Bushmen.  Their 
language  is  peculiar  for  its  unique  "  clicks," 
which  no  European   can  pronounce,  and  which 


AN    ALPHABET    OF    THE    WORLD'S    RACES 


seem  to  stand  between  articulate  and  inarticu- 
late speech. 

Hovas.  The  dominant  Malagasy  race  of  Mada- 
gascar, of  Malay  descent,  mixed  with  Bantu 
Negro  blood  from  Africa.  They  stand  nearest  to 
pure  Malays  of  all  Malagasy  peoples.  The 
existing  French  Protectorate  was  only  estab- 
lished after  much  fighting  with  the  warlike  Hovas, 
who  had  conquered  all  the  other  native  tribes. 

Huastec.  See  Maya-Quiche. 
Hungarians.  See  Magyars. 
Huns.  A  nomad  race  of  the  Northern  Mon- 
golic  family,  probably  of  Turki  stock,  who 
settled  in  tlie  neighbourhood  of  the  Volga  and 
the  Urals  about  the  dawn  of  the  Christian  era. 
In  the  fourth  century  they  conquered  and  dis- 
possessed the  Ostrogoths  and  Visigoths  on  the 
Danube.  Under  Attila,  in  the  fifth  century, 
they  invaded  Greece  and  Gaul,  and  pushed  their 
arms  as  far  as  Rome,  which  was  only  saved  by 
the  diplomacy  of  the  Pope.  Their  cruel  fierceness 
in  war  caused  their  great  leader  to  be  known  as 
the  Scourge  of  God.  Like  the  Mongols,  they 
were  essentially  a  race  of  horsemen,  and  their 
"  deformed  figures  and  hideous  Mongolic  faces  " 
added  to  the  terror  which  they  inspired.  After 
Attila's  death  in  453  the  Huns  fell  to  pieces,  and 
soon  were  absorbed  into  other  nations — especi- 
ally, perhaps,  the  Bulgars. 
Hunzas.     See  Dards. 

Hupas.     See  Athabascan. 

Hurons,  or  Wyandots.  A  North  American 
Indian  race  of  Iroquoian  stock,  formerly 
inhabiting  the  shores  of  Lake  Huron. 

Hyksos.  A  Northern  Mongolic  race  who 
invaded  Egypt  and  established  the  dynasty  of 
the  Shepherd  kings  about  2000  B.C. 

Ibeas.  A  Negro  race  which  recently  invaded 
the  Cameroons  from  the  East :  they  bring  down 
ivory  from  the  unexplored  interior.  Either 
Bantu,  or  Sudanese  ^perhaps  connected  with 
the  Azandch  (q.v.). 

Iberi,  or  Iberians.  An  ancient  race  of  Western 
Hamites, related  to  the  fair  Berbers  of  Mauritania. 
The  Basques  are  probably  descended  from  them, 
and  there  is  good  reason  for  identifying  them 
with  the  Picts  of  Scotland  and  the  Irish  aborigin«;s. 

Ibo.     See  Abo. 

Icelanders.  Inhabitants  of  Iceland,  originally 
Norwegians,  who  settled  there  about  the  end  of 
the  ninth  century.  A  typical  tall,  fair-haired, 
blue-eyed  Scandinavian  race.  The  Icelandic 
Sagas  form  the  chief  part  of  ancient  Scandinavian 
literature. 

Idumaeans  or  Edomites.  A  warlike  Semitic 
race  of  Canaanite  stock,  thought  to  be  descended 
from  Esau,  who  were  conquered  by  the  Israelites 
under  Saul  and  David,  and  again  by  Judas 
Maccabaeus  in  165  b.c,  after  which  they  dis- 
■  appear  from  history. 

Ife.     See  Yorubas. 

Igorrotes.  An  industrious  agricultural  race 
of  the  Philippine  Islands.  Indonesians  of  Malay 
descent,  with  a  possible  Chinese  or  Japanese 
element. 

Illinois  Indians.     See  Algonquian. 

Illyrians.  A  savage  piratical  race  of  the 
eastern  Adriatic  sea-board,  who  were  conquered 
by  the  Romans,  and  were  the  last  of  the  Balkan 
peoples  to  be  civilised.  Probably  the  modern 
Albanians  are  descended  from  them,  and  they 
were  among  the  first  Aryan  immigrants  to 
Europe. 


Ilocanos.  A  Malay  race  of  the  Philippine 
Islands. 

Imerians.  See  Georgians. 
Incas.  The  chief  of  the  six  Indian  races,  in- 
cluding the  Quichuas  and  the  warlike  Chancas, 
which  formerly  occupied  the  central  mountain- 
region  of  Peru.  The  Incas  became  the  dominant 
race  about  1000  a.d.,  and  built  up  a  vast  and 
peaceful  civilisation,  in  which  a  purely  socialistic 
government  was  successfully  administered.  This 
Inca  Empire  was  destroyed  by  the  Spanish 
Hiider  Pizarro  in  1533,  but  the  Inca  Indians 
still  survive  as  a  race  in  Central  Peru, 
where  they  are  known  as  industrious  and  honest 
agriculturists. 

Indians.  Native  races  (i)  of  India;  (2)  of 
North,  Central,  and  South  America. 

Indo-Chinese.  A  section  of  the  Southern 
Mongolic  family,  inhabiting  the  countries  between 
India  and  China. 

Indo-European,  Indo-German.     See  Aryan. 
Indonesians.     The  light-coloured,  non-Malay 
inhabitants  of  the  Eastern  Archipelago  and  South 
Sea  Islands,  who  are  of  Caucasic  type,  and  are 
mostly  brown-skinned  Polynesians  (q.v.).  ^  They 
also  include  the  Batjans  of  Batjan  I.,  the  Burus, 
Korongui,  and  Suvu  of  the  Malay  Archipelago, 
and  the  Mentawey  Islanders  (q.v.). 
Ingushis.     See  Chechenzes. 
Innuits.     See  Eskimos. 

lonians.  (i)  One  of  the  three  main  Hellenic 
races  of  ancient  Greece.  (2)  Greek  inhabitants 
of  the  coast  districts  and  islands  of  Western  Asia 
Minor,  forming  the  Ionian  League,  who  passed 
in  the  sixth  century  b.c.  under  the  Persian  sway. 
Iowa  Indians.  See  Siouan. 
Iranians.  Ancient  inhabitants  of  the  Asian 
plateau  bounded  by  the  Indus,  the  Tigris, 
and  the  Hindu  Kush.  A  stock  of  the  Aryan 
family,  now  including  Persians,  Afghans,  Balu- 
chis,  Kurds,  and  Armenians  (q-v.). 

Irish.  ( I )  The  aborigines  of  Ireland,  probably 
Iberians  (q.v.).  (2)  The  later  Erse-speaking 
inhabitants  of  Ireland,  a  branch  of  the  Goidelic 
or  Q  Celts.  (3)  Modern  inhabitants  of  Ireland, 
mostly  Celtic,  but  largely  mixed  with  Teutonic 
elements  in  the  north. 

Iroquoian.  One  of  the  families  of  North 
American  Indians,  including  the  Iroquois,  or 
"  Six  Nations,"  who  comprised  the  RIohawks, 
Oneidas,  Onondagas,  Senecas,  Tuscaroras  and 
Cayugas  ;  the  Hurons,  or  Wyandots,  including 
the  Eries,  and  the  Cherokees.  Their  territory 
was  Upper  Canada,  round  the  great  lakes. 
New  York,  and  the  Virginian  Highlands,  and  they 
played  a  large  part  in  the  Franco-British  war- 
fare of  the  eighteenth  century.  They  are  now 
few  in  numbers  and  confined  to  Indian  Reser- 
vations in  the  U.S.  and  Canada. 
Israelites.     See  Jews. 

Italians,  (i)  Ancient  inhabitants  of  Italy, 
of  Ligurian  stock,  probably  Eastern  Hamites, 
related  to  the  Pelasgians  [see  Latins  and 
Romans].  (2)  Modern  Italians,  mostly  of  Latin 
stock,  crossed  with  Teutonic  (Gothic  and  Lom- 
bard) blood. 

Italic.  A  stock  of  the  Aryan  family,  including 
ancient  and  modern  Italians  (with  ancient 
Romans),  modern  French,  Spanish,  Portuguese, 
and  Roumanian,  with  Latin  (Spanish  and 
Portuguese)  Americans. 

Jallonke.     See  Mandingan. 

Jangalis.       An    aboriginal    Indian    tribe,    in* 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


habiting  the  forest  district  north  of  Cuttack — 
the  most  primitive  race  in  all  India.  Perhaps 
an  early  Dra vidian  (q.v.)  stock. 

Japanese.  A  race  of  the  Northern  Mongolian 
family,  probably  originating  in  Korea,  whence 
they  spread  to  Japan  and  dispossessed  the  Ainu 
aborigines,  about  the  dawn  of  the  Clu-istian  era. 
The  most  enterprising  and  civilised  people  in 
Asia,  often  called  "  the  English  of  the  Far  East." 
They  possess  a  singularly  high  standard  of  honour 
and  patriotism,  which  was  the  main  factor  in 
their  recent  victory  over  Russia,  and  they  are 
eminently  warlike,  besides  producing  industrious 
agriculturists  and  enterprising  traders.  Of 
short  but  sturdy  stature,  white  skin  and  yellow 
or  sallowish  complexion,  oblique  eyes,  black  hair. 

Jats.  A  numerous  agricultural  race  of  the 
Punjab  in  North-west  India.  They  are  probably 
of  an  ArA'an  stock,  but  ethnologists  disagree  as  to 
their  history,  assigning  them  ancient  Scythian  in- 
vaders, the  Rajputs,  or  the  Gipsies,  for  ancestors. 

Javanese.  A  IMalay  race  inhabiting  Java, 
where  they  dispossessed  the  Negrito  aborigines 
[see  Kalangs]  in  prehistoric  times.  The  Sun- 
danese  and  Madurese  are  allied  tribes,  possessing 
parts  of  the  island  of  Java,  now  under  Dutch  rule. 

Jebus.     See  Yorubas. 

Jews,  Hebrews,  or  Israelites.  The  most  im- 
portant of  Semitic  races,  of  the  ancient  Canaanite 
stock.  The  Israelites  descended  from  Abraham, 
who  came  from  Mesopotamia  to  Canaan  about 
2000  B.C.  ;  thence  they  migrated  to  Egypt,  and 
returned  to  take  possession  of  Palestine.  Their 
history  is  familiar  to  all  from  the  Bible.  After  the 
Roman  capture  of  Jerusalem  under  Titus,  70  a.d., 
the  Jews — as  they  were  now  called — were  dis- 
persed though  the  world,  but  they  have  retained 
their  racial  characteristics  in  remarkable  purity 
through  long  persecutions,  and  now  play  a 
great  part  in  the  commerce  and  finance  of  nearly 
all  civilised  countries,  though  they  have  no 
national  unity  or  racial  home. 

Jivaros.  South  American  Indians  in  Peru, 
on  the  head-waters  of  the  Amazon. 

Jolofs.     See  Wolofs. 

Jutes.  Early  inhabitants  of  Jutland,  a  Low 
German  branch  of  Teutonic  stock,  who  invaded 
England  in  the  fifth  century  and  made  the  first 
Teutonic  settlement  in  that  country,  in  Kent. 

Kabards.  A  Western  Caucasian  race,  allied 
to  the  Circassians  {q.v.)  and  presenting  a  high 
standard  of  physical  beauty. 

Kabyles.     See  Berbers. 

Kacbaris.  Natives  of  the  Terai  at  the  foot  of 
the  Himalayas,  belonging  to  the  Tibetan  stock  of 
the  Southern  Mongolic  family. 

Kafirs,  or  Kaffirs.  Generic  name  of  the  fierce 
and  warlike  Bantu  Negro  races  which  occupied 
the  south-eastern  seaboard  of  South  Africa  when 
Europeans  first  colonised  that  country.  They 
then  held  all  the  coast  lands  from  the  Gamboos 
to  the  Limpopo.  The  southern  part  (Kaffraria) 
belonged  to  the  Kafirs  proper,  and  the  northern 
(Zululand)  to  the  Zulus,  an  allied  race,  but  usually 
distinguished  from  the  Kafirs,  or  Ama-Xosa, 
whose  chief  tribes  are  Galekas,  Gaikas  and 
Tembus  (q.v.).  Throughout  the  greater  part  of 
the  nineteenth  century  the  English  settlers 
were  engaged  in  constant  Kafir  wars,  which 
resulted  in  the  gradual  subjugation  of  both 
Katirs  and  Zulus. 

Kafirs.  Fair-skinned  mountaineers  of  Kafiri- 
stan,  between  the  Kabul  River  and  Hindu  Kush. 

332 


An  offshoot  of  the  Aryan  family,  thought  by 
some  to  be  descendants  in  part  of  the  Greek 
troops  with  which  Alexander  the  Great  invaded 
India. 

Kakhyens.  A  race  of  freebooters,  inhabiting 
the  northern  frontiers  of  Burma,  whence  they 
raid  the  more  civilised  agriculturists  of  the  plains 
and  levy  blackmail.  A  Southern  Mongolic  race 
of  Indo-Chinese  stock. 

Kalangs.  A  recently  extinct  Negrito  race  of 
Java,  remnants  of  the  aborigines  of  that  island ; 
small,  black  and  woolly-haired,  with  very 
retreating  forehead  and  projecting  jaws.  The 
most  ape-like  of  human  beings,  and  the  nearest 
approach  yet  found  to  the  "  missing  link  " 
between  man  and  ape.  They  belonged  to  the 
Oceanic  Negro  family. 

Kalmuks.  The  Western  IMongol  stock  of  the 
Northern  Mongolic  family,  scattered  through 
Central  Asia,  and  extending  into  Southern 
Russia.  Nomadic  pastors,  owning  large  flocks 
and  herds,  and  living  in  tents  on  the  great 
steppes,  they  include  the  tribes  of  the  Chorasses, 
Turguts,  Khoshots,  and  Durbats.  A  large  horde 
of  Kalmuks  invaded  Russia  in  1650,  and  settled 
there  for  a  century,  but  in  177 1  most  of  them 
were  expelled,  and  endured  great  sufferings  on 
the  march  to  China,  so  brilliantly  described  by 
De  Quincy.  These  were  mainly  Khoshots  and 
Durbats. 

Kamchadales.  A  Siberian  branch  of  the 
Northern  Mongolic  family,  inhabiting  Kam- 
chatka ;  a  hardy  race  of  hunters  and  fishers. 

Kanakas.  A  name  given  to  South  Sea  Is- 
landers, generally  by  sailors  and  traders,  and 
especially  to  Polynesian  labourers  imported 
to  Queensland. 

Kanakas,  or  Bakana&a.  Negro  aborigines 
of  Angola,  probably  akin  to  the  Bushmen. 
Other  similar  tribes  are  the  Korokas,  Kulabes, 
Kwandes  and  Kwisses. 

Kanarese.  Mongoloid  aborigines  of  Mysore 
in  India.      See  Dravidians. 

Kanembu,  Kanuris.      See  Lake  Chad  Group. 

Kara-Kalpaks,  or  Black  Bonnets.  A  branch  of 
the  Turki  stock  of  the  Northern  Mongolic  family, 
dwelling  on  the  south-east  of  the  Aral  Sea  and 
in  the  Oxus  basin.  A  pacific  pastoral  race, 
dominated  by  their  warlike  relatives,  the  nomadic 
Kirghiz,  and  now  subject  to  Russia. 

Kara-Kirghiz.     See  Kirghiz. 

Karelians.  An  Eastern  branch  of  Baltic 
Finns  dwelling  in  the  eastern  parts  of  Finland 
and  adjoining  provinces  of  Russia.  Probably 
a  Slavo-Mongolic  mixture  in  which  the  original 
Mongolic  element  has  been  largely  eliminated. 

Karens.  Inhabitants  of  Burma,  of  the  Indo- 
Chinese  branch  of  the  Southern  Mongolic  family.. 
Largely  Christianised.  Formerly  oppressed  by 
the  Burmans,  than  whom  they  are  less  clever, 
but  more  industrious.   Agriculturists. 

Karons.  A  Negrito  race  of  New  Guinea,  of 
very  degraded  type,  and  addicted  to  canni- 
balism. 

Kargos.     See  Nuba  Group. 

Kashmiris.  Natives  of  Kashmir,  belonging 
to  the  Hindu  branch  of  the  Aryan  family.  Of 
fine  ph\'si(|ue,  but  corrupt  and  untrustworthy. 

Kassonke.     See  Mandingan. 

Kazaks.     See  Kirghiz. 

Kelts,  or  Celts.  A  stock  of  the  Aryan  family 
which  settled  in  France  and  the  British  Islands 
in  prehistoric  times.      The  Gauls  and  Belgae  of 


A    RED     INDIAN    CHIEF    AND    HIS    FAMILY 


Un-.icrwood  &  Unilcrwood 


3S5 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Caesar's  time  and  the  early  Britons  represent 
them.  They  are  divided  into  two  branches,  Goi- 
dehc  and  Brythonic  Celts,  respectively  known 
also  as  Q  and  P  Celts,  from  a  linguistic  pecu- 
liarity. The  former  are  represented  in  modern 
times  by  Irish,  Manx,  and  Scottish  Highlanders  ; 
the  latter  by  Welsh,  Cornish,  and  Bretons.  The 
typical  Celt  was  probably  a  tall,  broad-headed 
individual,  with  prominent  nose,  high  cheek- 
bones, light  hair  and  eyes.  The  small,  round- 
headed,  dark  race  which  is  also  classed  as  Celtic, 
is  more  probably  an  earlier  Hamitic  type,  allied 
to  the  Basques  {q.v.). 

Khulkas.  A  nomadic  race  of  Eastern  Mongols, 
occupying  the  Gobi  desert. 

Khamtis.  An  Assamese  race — Indo-Chinese 
stock  of  Southern  Mongolic  family — in  the 
Brahmaputra  Valley. 

Khasis.  An  Indo-Chinese  hill  tribe  of  Southern 
Mongolic  family,  in  Khasi  Hills  of  Assam. 

Khoi-Khoin.     The  name  given  to  themselves 
by  the  Hottentots  (q.v.). 
Khoshots.     See  Kalmuks. 
Kickapoos.     See  Algonquian. 
Kiowas.     A  North  American   Indian  race  in 
Oklahoma. 

Kipchaks.  A  Turki  race  of  Northern  Mongolic 
family,  settled  in  eleventh  century  between 
Urals  and  Don.  In  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth 
century,  Batu  Khan,  a  son  of  Genghiz  Khan,  led 
them  to  conquer  all  Central  and  South  Russia, 
where  they  founded  the  Empire  of  the  Golden 
Horde.  It  was  broken  up  by  Tamerlane  about 
1390,  and  from  its  fragments  arose  the  Khanates 
of  Astrakhan,  the  Crimea,  etc.,  now  absorbed  by 
Russia.  From  the  Eastern  Kipchaks  are  des- 
cended the  Kirghiz  (q.v.),  one  of  whose  hordes  is 
still  known  as  Kipchak.  The  modern  Kipchaks 
are  nomadic,  and  live  by  stock-feeding  in  the 
steppes  of  western  Turkestan. 

Kirantis.  A  Tibetan  race  of  East  Nepal,  of 
Southern  Mongolic  family. 

Kirghiz.  A  nomadic  people  of  Central  Asia, 
where  they  occupy  the  vast  steppes  which  lie  to 
the  north  of  Turkestan.  They  are  descended 
from  the  Kipchaks  (q.v)  of  the  Golden  Horde. 
They  form  a  group  of  the  Turki  stock  of  the 
Northern  Mongolic  family.  The  Kara- Kirghiz, 
who  inhabit  the  uplands  between  the  Issik-Kul 
and  the  Kucn-Lun,  are  the  oldest  Turki  nomads 
of  whom  there  is  any  historical  record,  and  are 
divided  into  On  and  Sol — right  and  left  wings. 
The  Kirghiz  proper,  who  call  themselves  Kazaks, 
or  "  riders,"  roam  from  Lake  Balicash  to  the 
Volga,  over  the  vast  level  steppes,  where  they 
dwell  in  skin  tents  and  support  themselves  by 
breeding  camels,  horses,  oxen,  sheep  and  goats. 
They  live  in  the  saddle,  and  were  formerly  a 
warlike  people,  who  once  could  put  400,000 
fighting  men  in  the  field.  They  are  divided  into 
four  hordes — Great,  Middle  or  Kipchak,  Little, 
and  Inner.  They  are  all  now  under  Russian 
dominion. 

Kishis.     See  Chechenzes. 
Kissis.     See  Temne  Group. 
Kizil-Bashis.     Persianised  Turkis  of  Afghan- 
istan,   belonging   to  Turki   branch   of   Northern 
Mongolic    family,    who    supply    the    chief    com- 
mercial classes  of  Afghanistan. 
Kolajis.     See    Nuba    Group. 
Kolarians.     One     of     the     three    non-Aryan 
races     to     which    the    primitive    inhabitants    of 
India  belonged,  of  the  Indo-Chinese  stocjc  of  the 

334 


Southern  Mongolic  family.  They  entered  Bengal 
from  the  north-east,  and  are  now  represented  by 
a  few  scattered  tribes,  like  the  Santals,  Mundas, 
Kurkus,  and  Bhils. 

Koranas.  See  Hottentots. 
Koreans.  Natives  of  Korea,  belonging  to  the 
Koreo- Japanese  stock  of  the  Northern  Mongol 
family  They  stand  midway  between  Chinese  and 
Japanese,  the  latter  being  probably  their  des- 
cendants, and  are  taller,  with  lighter  complexion 
and  more  regular  features,  than  the  typical 
Mongol.  Their  civilisation  is  of  Chinese  origin. 
They  are  not  warlike,  but  are  prosperous 
agriculturists. 

Korokas.     See  Kanakas. 
Korungas.     See  Wadai  Group. 
Koryaks.      An     Arctic    race     of     North-east 
Siberia,  allied  to  the  Chukchis  (q.v.). 
Krcj.     See  Nilitic  Group. 
Krim-Tartars.     See  Tartars. 
Krus,   or    Krooboys.     Sudanese    Negroes    of 
Liberian    Group.     Bold    and    skilful    boatmen, 
employed  for  that  purpose  all  along  the  West 
African  Coast. 

Kulabes.     See  Kanakas. 
Kulfans,  Kunjaras.     See  Nuba  Group. 
Kurds.     Natives  of  Kurdistan,  partly  nomad 
and    pastoral,    partly    settled    and    agricultural. 
A  fierce  and  warlike  people,  they  are  much  given 
to  raiding,  and  were  utilised  by  the  Sultan  to 
oppress  the  Armenians.     They  have  settled  in 
Kurdistan  from  time  i«imemorial,  and  belong  to 
the  Iranian  stock  of  the  Aryan  family. 
Kurile  Islanders.     See  Ainus. 
Kurinis.     See  Lesghians. 

Kurkus.    A  broken  Kolarian  tribe,  allied  to  the 
Santals  of  Central  India,  belonging  to  the  Indo- 
Chinese  branch  of  Southern  Mongolic  family. 
Kutchins.     See  Athabascan. 
Kwandes,  Kwisses.     See  Kanakas. 
Ladakhis.        Natives     of      Ladakh      in      the 
Upper  Indus   Valley,  belonging  to  the  Tibetan 
stock    of    the   Southern   Mongolic   family,    con- 
quered by  Kashmir  in  seventeenth  century. 

Lake  Chad  Group.  A  group  of  Sudanese 
Negro  tribes,  inhabiting  the  districts  round  Lake 
Chad,  including  Kanembus,  Kanuris,  Baghirmis 
(warlike  slave-raiders),  Mandaras,  Yedinas, 
Logons,  Mosgus,  Bulalas,  Saras,  etc. 

Lampongs.  Malay  inhabitants  of  Southern 
Sumatra. 

Lamuts.     See  Tunguses. 

Landumans.  Sudanese  Negroes  of  Senegambia. 
Laos.     See  Shans. 

Lapps.  A  branch  of  the  Finno-Ugiian  stock 
of  the  Northern  Mongolic  family,  inhabiting  the 
parts  of  Norway,  Sweden,  Finland,  and  Russia 
collectively  known  as  Lapland.  They  are  the 
shortest  and  broadest-skulled  people  in  Europe. 
Most  of  them  are  nomads,  who  live  by  their  vast 
reindeer  herds,  though  some  have  become 
settled  and  live  by  fishing  and  hunting.  They 
are  closely  allied  to  the  Baltic  Finns,  and  like 
them  show  traces  of  a  mixture  of  Caucasic 
blood . 

Lascars.  A  term  applied  to  sailors  of  Indian 
and  Malay  seafaring  races,  employed  on  British 
vessels. 

Latins.  The  ancient  inhabitants  of  Latium, 
the  district  of  Central  Italy  which  lay  between 
the  Tiber  and  the  Liris,  and  included  the  Roman 
Campagna.  They  absorbed  the  earlier  allied 
races     of     Oscans,      Sabines,      Samnites,      and 


AN    ALPHABET    OF    THE    WORLD'S    RACES 


Umbrians,  and  formed  a  league  of  thirty  cities, 
which  warred  for  some  generations  with  Rome 
and  then  fell  under  the  Roman  dominion.  Rome 
itself  was  originally  a  Latin  city.  The  ancient 
population  of  Italy  was  divided  into  three  grades  : 
Roman  citizens — not  necessarily  residents  in 
Rome — Latins,  and  Italians.  The  Latins  are  a 
branch  of  the  Italic  stock  of  the  Aryan  family 

Latin  or  Romance  Races.  A  name  often  given 
to  the  modern  races  which  speak  a  Romance 
language  derived  from  Latin,  and  belong  in 
whole  or  part  to  the  Italic  stock  of  the  Aryan 
family.  They  include  Italians,  French  (including 
Provencals),  Spaniards,  Portuguese,  and  Rou- 
manians. 

Latin  Americans.     The  white  inhabitants  of 
South  America,  of  Spanish  or  Portuguese  descent, 
and   speaking  these  languages. 
Lazes.     See  Georgians. 

Lencan.  A  group  of  semi-civilised  Central 
American  Indian  tribes,  including  Chontals, 
Ramas,  Payas,  Wulwas,  and  Guatusas. 

Lepchas.  Natives  of  Sikkim  and  Bhutan, 
belonging  to  the  Tibetan  stock  of  the  Southern 
Mongolic  family. 

Lesghians.  A  branch  of  the  Eastern  stock 
of  the  Caucasian  family,  inhabiting  the  Eastern 
Caucasus.  Wild  mountain  tribes,  who  long 
offered  an  unavailing  resistance  to  the  Russian 
arms  under  Shamyl  (1859).  Their  chief  tribes 
are  the  Avars  (the  most  cultivated  and  powerful), 
Andis,  Dargos,  Didis  and  Kurinis. 

Lettic.  A  stock  of  the  Aryan  family,  includ- 
ing Letts,  Lithuanians  and  the  extinct  Pruczi, 
Borussians,  or  Old  Prussians,  from  whom 
modern  Prussia  takes  its  name.  The  Letts  and 
Lithuanians  in  the  fifteenth  century  formed  a 
united  people,  inhabiting  the  south-west  of 
Russia,  from  Courland  to  Odessa.  Afterwards 
they  passed  under  Polish  and  then  Russian 
dominion.  They  are  now  mostly  peasant 
agriculturists.  They  are  fair  and  well-built, 
with  fine  features  and  blue  eyes. 

Letts.     See  Lettic. 

Liberian  Group.  Sudanese  Negro  tribes,  in- 
habiting the  Grain  Coast  of  West  Africa.  The 
Krus  or  Krooboys  (q.v.),  Queahs  and  Bassas 
are  their  chief  tribes. 

Liberians.  Natives  of  the  negro  republic  of 
Liberia  on  the  Guinea  Coast,  partly  descended 
from  freed  slaves  of  all  races,  but  mainly  belong- 
ing to  the  Liberian  group. 

Libyans.  An  ancient  fair-haired  and  light- 
skinned  race  of  Northern  Africa,  akin  to  the 
modern  Berbers,  belonging  to  the  western 
stock  of  the  Hamitic  family.  They  are  depicted 
on  Egyptian  monuments  of  fifteenth  century  B.C. 

Ligures,  or  Ligurians.  An  ancient  race  of 
the  western  stock  of  the  Hamitic  family,  probably 
the  aborigines  of  North-West  Italy  round  Genoa, 
to  whom  the  Siculi,  Sards  and  Corsicans  were 
apparently  akin.  , 

Limbas.     See  Temne  Group. 

Lithuanians.     See    Lettic. 

Livonians.  A  branch  of  Baltic  Finns,  belong- 
ing to  the  Finno-Ugrian  stock  of  the  Northern 
Mongolic  family  ;  a  dwindled  remnant  now 
inhabits  the  Baltic  provinces  of  Russia. 

Logons.     See  Lake  Chad  Group. 

Lolos.  A  fair-complexioned  aboriginal  race 
on  the  frontiers  of  China  and  Tibet,  belonging  to 
the  Chinese  stock  of  the  Southern  Mongolic 
family. 


Lombards.  A  race  of  Teutonic  stock,  formerly 
settled  in  the  district  of  the  Lower  Elbe,  who 
invaded  Italy  in  568,  and  there  founded  a  power- 
ful Lombard  kingdom  uhder  Alboin  and  his 
successors.  The  Lombards  were  at  first  fierce 
warriors  and  little  more  ;  but  they  soon  fell 
under  the  influence  of  Italian  civilisation,  and 
were  merged  into  the  Italian  race  when  Charle- 
magne destroyed  their  independence  in  774. 
Their  name  and  some  traces  of  their  racial 
character  still  remain  in  Lombardy,  between  the 
Alps  and  the  Po. 

Luchuans.  Natives  of  the  Luchu  or  Liu-Kiu 
Archipelago,  between  Japan  and  Formosa, 
resembling  the  Japanese,  but  with  differences 
which  are  attributed  to  a  cross  of  the  aboriginal 
Ainu  blood.  They  belong  to  the  Koreo- Japanese 
stock  of  the  Northern  Mongolic  family. 

Lushais.      A  warlike  race   of   Tibetan   stock 
inhabiting   the    Lushai   Hills  on  the  confines  of 
Assam,  Bengal  and  Burma. 
Mabas.     See   Wadai   Group. 
Macedonians.     A  warlike   people   of   ancient 
Greece,  who  attained  their  greatest  power  under 
Alexander    the    Great.     They    were    not    true 
Hellenes,   but   a  race  of  wild   mountain   tribes 
probably  of  Hamitic  origin.     Modern  Macedonia 
is  peopled  by  an  extremely  mixed  race  of  Greeks, 
Bulgarians,    Turks,    etc.,    among    whom    some 
descendants   of   the   ancient   Macedonians   may 
no  doubt  be  found. 
Macusis.     See  Caries. 
Madis.     See  Nilitic  Group. 
Madurese.     A   Malay   race    inhabiting    Java, 
and  allied  to  the  Javanese  {q.v.). 

Magars.     A  Tibetan  tribe  of  Western  Nepal 
Magwangwaras.     A  fierce    predatory  race  of 
Bantu   Negroes,   occupying    the   head-waters   of 
the  Rovuma  River  in  East  Central  Africa. 

Magyars.  A  warlike  and  now  highly  civilised 
race  belonging  to  the  Finno-Ugrian  stock  of 
the  Northern  Mongolic  family.  They  first 
appeared  in  Europe  about  a  thousand  years 
ago,  being  probably  Scythian  (q.v.)  immigrants 
from  the  Caspian  district.  They  conquered  the 
Roman  provinces  of  Pannonia  and  Dacia,  and 
there  founded  the  Kingdom  of  Hungary  in  the 
year  1000.  They  are  still  the  dominant  race  in 
Hungary,  which  now  forms  part  of  the  Austro- 
Hungarian  Empire,  and  preserve  their  Finno- 
Ugrian  speech.  They  are  a  chivalrous  and 
highly  intelligent  race,  whose  Mongolic  descent 
is  no  longer  perceptible  in  their  white  skins  and 
regular,  often  handsome  features.  Probably 
this  is  due  to  frequent  crossing  of  blood  with 
German,  Slav  and  Roumanian  neighbours. 
Mahrattas.  See  Marathis. 
Makololos.  A  warlike  branch  of  the  Basuto 
race  of  Bantu  Negroes  who,  in  1835,  moved 
north  and  conquered  the  Barotses,  only  to  be 
reduced  by  them  to  vassalage  about  1 864. 

Makuas.  A  savage  cannibal  race  of  Bantu 
Negroes,  living  north  of  the  Zambesi  in  Portu- 
guese East  Africa. 

Malagasy.  A  Malayo- African  people  of  mixed 
blood,  inhabiting  Madagascar.  The  Hovas 
(q.v.)  are  the  dominant  tribe. 

Malays.  The  dominant  native  race  of  Malay- 
sia, the  chief  stock  of  the  Oceanic  Mongolic 
family.  They  are  of  a  distinctly  Mongolic 
physical  type,  of  low  stature  and  yellowish  colour, 
with  high  cheek-bones,  black  lank  hair  and 
broad  skulls.     They  may  be  divided  into  three 

335 


HISTORY    OF    THE     WORLD 


races :  the  Orang-Benua,  or  men  of  the  soil, 
the  indigenous  Malay  tribes  at  a  low  stage  of 
culture  ;  the  Orang-Laut,  or  men  of  the  sea, 
who  live  by  fishing  and  piracy  ;  and  the  Orang- 
Malayu,  or  civilised  Malays  proper.  They  in- 
habit the  southern  provinces  of  Sumatra,  the 
native  states  of  the  Malay  Peninsula  (Kelantan, 
etc.),  the  British  Straits  Settlements  (Johor, 
Perak,  Selangor,  etc.),  parts  of  Borneo,  Ternate, 
Tidor  and  the  Banda  Islands,  and  many  islands 
of  the  Malay  Archipelago.  They  have  wandered 
as  far  as  Madagascar,  where  the  Malagasy  (q-v.) 
are  Malays  crossed  with  Negro  blood.  They 
were  formerly  warlike  and  much  given  to 
piracy,  but  are  now  the  chief  trading  race  of 
South-eastern  Asia.  Their  origin  is  dubious, 
but  Sumatra  is  generally  regarded  as  their 
original  home.  Of  kindred  blood  are  many  so- 
called  Proto-Malay  races,  such  as  the  Achinese, 
Javanese,  Sundanese,  Dyaks,  etc.  {q-v.). 

Malayalim.     See  Dravidians. 

Manchus.  The  dominant  native  race  of 
Manchuria,  who  conquered  China  in  the  seven- 
teenth century  and  founded  the  existing  Chinese 
dynasty.  They  are  of  the  Mongol  stock  of  the 
Northern  Mongolic  family.  They  first  appear 
in  history  in  the  thirteenth  century,  when  a 
.  number  of  nomad  Manchu  tribes  were  formed 
into  a  single  people.  They  probably  originated 
in  Siberia,  where  the  Tunguses  (q.v.)  represent 
their  primitive  stock. 

Mandans.     See  Siouan. 

Mandaras.     See  Lake   Chad  Group. 

Mandingans.  The  chief  race  of  Sudanese 
Negroes  in  the  Western  Sudan,  with  numerous 
branches  between  the  Upper  Niger  and  the 
coast,  including  Mande  or  Mandingoes,  Bam- 
baras,  Jallonkes,  Kassonkes,  Masinas,  Sarakoles, 
Solimas,  Susus,  etc.  Timbuctoo  was  formerly 
the  capital  of  the  Mandingan  empire,  before  it 
fell  under  Berber  domination.  A  large  propor- 
tion of  American  Negroes  are  descended  from 
slaves  of  Mandingan  origin. 

Mangbattu.  Sudanese  negroes  of  Welle  group, 
noted    for  their  pronounced  cannibalism. 

Mangkassara.  Malay  natives  of  Macassar, 
in  Celebes,  under  Dutch  rule. 

Manipuris.  Natives  of  Manipur,  between 
Burma  and  Assam,  mostly  wild  hillmen  of 
mixed  Burmese  and  Hindu  blood,  but  classed 
with  the  Indo-Chinese  stock  of  the  Southern 
Mongolic  family. 

Man-Tses.  Inhabitants  of  the  mountain  dis- 
tricts of  Sze-chuenin  China,  akintoLolos  (q.v.).  m 

Manx  or  Manxmen.  Inhabitants  of  the  Isle 
of  Man,  belonging  to  the  Celtic  stock  of  the 
Aryan  family,  and  the  Goidelic  or  Q  Celt 
branch  of  it.  There  is  a  strong  Scandinavian 
element  in  their  blood,  from  the  numerous 
invasions  of  the  old  Norse  pirates  Their 
customs  are  also  strongly  marked  by  the  Scan- 
dinavian element. 

Manyuemas.  Warlike  Bantu  Negroes  of  the 
Upper  Congo,  long  allied  with  the  Arab  slave- 
traders. 

Maoris.  The  aborigines  of  New  Zealand, 
belonging  to  the  tall  brown  race  of  Polynesians 
{q.v.),  a  branch  of  the  Indonesian  family.  A 
brave,  generous  and  warlike  people,  who  are  said 
to  have  reached  New  Zealand  from  the  Pacific 
islands  about  a  thousand  years  ago,  they  are 
one  of  the  few  native  races  which  promise  to 
assimilate  western  civilisation  with  success. 

336 


Marathis,  or  Mahrattas.  A  numerous  Indian 
race  of  mixed  origin,  probably  of  aboiiginal 
(Dravidian)  blood  in  the  main,  with  a  Hindu 
element.  They  inhabit  West  and  Central  India, 
where  they  became  the  dommant  power  under 
Sivaji  in  the  seventeenth  century.  The  English 
had  long  and  bloody  contests  with  these  wild 
and  warlike  mountaineers,  who  founded  several 
great  native  states,  some  of  which  (Gwalior  and 
Indore)  survive  to  this  day. 

■  Maronites.  A  sturdy,  warlike  Christian  race 
of  mountaineers  in  the  Lebanon,  belonging  to 
the  Syrian  branch  of  the  Aramaean  stock  of  the 
Semitic  family.  Implacable  foes  of  the  Druses, 
with  whom  they  are  constantly  at  war. 

Marquesans.     See    Polynesians. 

Masais.  A  branch  of  the  Eastern  Hamites, 
settled  in  British  East  Africa  on  the  Tana  River. 
A  finely-built  race,  whom  only  their  chocolate 
colour  and  frizzy  hair  prevent  from  passing  for 
Europeans.  Extremely  warlike  and  intelligent, 
they  are  confirmed  raiders  and  cattle  lifters. 

Mashonas.  Natives  of  Mashonaland,  in  South- 
eastern Rhodesia,  formerly  the  half-fabulous 
empire  of  the  Monomotapa,  and  the  home  of  a 
forgotten  civilisation,  to  which  the  ruins  of  Zim- 
babye  and  other  similar  relics  bear  witness. 
The  Mashonas  are  Bantu  Negroes,  a  peaceful, 
industrious  people,  who  were  subjugated  about 
1838  by  the  Matabeles  under  Umsilikatzi,  and 
are  now  under  British  rule. 

Massachusett  Indians.     See  Algonquian. 

Massalits.     See  Wadai  Group. 

Matabeles.  A  branch  of  the  Zulu  race  of 
Bantu  Negroes,  which  was  expelled  from  Zulu- 
land  in  1838,  and  conquered  the  Mashonas,  in 
modern  Rhodesia,  under  LTmsilikatzi.  Like  the 
Zulus,  they  were  proud  and  fearless  warriors, 
who  were  only  subjugated  with  difficulty  by 
the  English  in  1893,  and  revolted  unsuccessfully 
in  1896. 

Matacoans.  A  South  American  Indian  race 
on  the  Vermejo  River  in  Argentine. 

Mauri.     See  Moors. 

Maviti.  Bantu  Negroes  of  the  Upper  Shire 
in  British  South  Central  Africa,  of  Zulu  stock, 
who  came  as  conquerors  from  the  south. 

Maya-Quiche.  A  group  of  Central  American 
Indian  races,  mostly  in  Yucatan  and  Guatemala. 
It  includes  the  Mayas  of  Yucatan,  Zendals  and 
Zotzils  of  Chiapas,  Quiches,  Chols,  Pokomans,  and 
Zutugils  of  Guatemala,  Huastecs  and  Totonacs 
of  Vera  Cruz.  Like  the  Aztecs,  the  Mayas 
possessed  an  ancient  civilisation  and  system  of 
picture  writing. 

Maypuris.     See   Arawaks. 

Mbengas.  Indigenous  Bantu  Negroes  of  French 
Equatorial  Africa,  about  Corisco  Bay. 

Melanesians.  The  indigenous  natives  of  the 
Western  Pacific  Islands,  forming  a  distinct  stock 
of  the  Oceanic  Negro  family  of  Ethiopic  Man. 
They  are  long-skulled,  or  dolichocephalic,  with 
the  lowest  cephalic  index  of  all  known  races, 
prognathous,  broad-nosed,  of  a  sooty-black 
colour,  with  black  frizzy  hair,  and  of  low  stature. 
They  are  at  a  low  stage  of  culture,  being  very 
savage,  bloodthirsty,  and  treacherous,  mostly 
cannibals  and  head-hunters,  with  little  social 
organisation.  They  include  the  Fijians  and  the 
natives  of  the  New  Hebrides,  the  Solomon, 
Admiralty,  Bismarck,  and  Loyalty  Islands,  New 
Britain,  New  Ireland,  New  Caledonia,  and  other 
islands  of  the  Eastern  Pacific.     They  are  closely 


AN    ALPHABET    OF    THE    WORLD'S    RACES 


allied  to  the  Papuans  (^.v.),  under  which  name 
some  ethnologists  prefer  to  class  the  whole  body 
of  jMcIancsians. 

Melanochroi.  A  suggested  division  of  Caucasic 
Man,  in  which  a  pale  skin  is  typically  accompanied 
by  dark  hair  and  eyes  ;  it  would  thus  include 
the  Hamitic  and  Semitic  families,  with  the 
Hellenic,  Italic,  and  Celtic  stocks  of  the  Aryan 
family. 

Mendis.     See  Temne  Group. 

Mentawey  Islanders.  A  remnant  of  the 
aboriginal  Polynesian  race  dispossessed  by  the 
IMalays,  off  the  coast  of  Sumatra. 

Mestizos.  Cross-breeds  between  Europeans 
and  Indians,  in  Spanish  and  Portuguese  America. 

Mexicans.  See  Aztecs  and  Nahuans.  Also  the 
modern  inhabitants  of  Mexico,  who  are  of  Spanish 
descent,  with  a  strong  infusion  of  Indian  blood. 

Micmacs.  An  Indian  race  of  Nova  Scotia, 
in  whom  some  ethnologists  think  that  a  trace  of 
Norse  blood,  dating  from  the  pre-Columbian 
discovery  of  America,  is  perceptible. 

Minaeans.     See  Himyarites. 

Mingrelians.     See    Georgians. 

Minh-huongs.  Franco-Annamese  half-breeds 
in  Cochin  China,  an  increasing  race  who  make 
very  valuable  colonists. 

Minnetarees.     See  Siouan. 

Mishmis.  A  wild  Tibetan  hill  tribe  occupying 
the  jungle-covered  hills  through  which  the 
Brahmaputra  flows,  on  the  northern  border  of 
Assam.     Warlike  and  turbulent. 

Missouri  Indians.     See  Siouan. 

Mixtecs.  An  ancient  Mexican  race,  contem- 
porary with  the  Toltecs  {q.v.),  probably  repre- 
sented bv  the  modern  Miztecs  of  Oajaca. 

Moabites.  An  ancient  pastoral  race  of  Semitic 
origin,  ethnologically  cognate  with  the  Israelites, 
who  dwelt  on  the  east  of  the  Dead  Sea,  and  are 
now  extinct. 

Moesogoths.     See    Goths. 

Mohawks.     See  Iroquoian. 

Mohicans.  One  of  the  most  famous  and  war- 
like of  redskin  races,  immortalised  by  Fenimore 
Cooper.     See  Algonquian. 

Mojos,  or  Moxos.  A  yellowish  Indian  race  of 
Bolivia,  akin  to  the  Chiquitos. 

Mokis.     See  Shoshonean. 

Mongolic.  One  of  the  four  great  divisions  of 
mankind.  Typically  characterised  by  yellowish 
skin,  broad,  flat  features  with  prominent  cheek- 
bones, broad  skulls,  mesognathous  jaws,  and 
oblique,  almond-shaped  eyes,  with  black,  lank 
and  coarse  hair.  The  Manchus  are  a  typical 
Mongolic  race.  The  Mongolic  races  are  mostly 
found  in  Asia,  which  is  chiefly  peopled  by  their 
stocks.  The  name  "  Mongolic  "  has  replaced  the 
older  "  Turanian." 

Mongols.  A  stock  of  the  Northern  Mongolic, 
otherwise  known  as  Mongolo-Tartar  or  Ural- 
Altaic,  family,  from  whom  the  general  term 
of  Mongolic  is  derived.  The  name  seems  origin- 
ally to  have  meant  "  brave,"  and  the  Mongols 
have  provided  some  of  the  most  fierce  and  war- 
like races  of  history.  They  originated  as  scattered 
tribes  in  modern  Mongolia.  Under  Genghiz  Khan 
they  were  formed  into  a  confederacy  which  con- 
quered the  whole  of  Central  Asia  in  the  thirteenth 
century,  thanks  to  an  unlimited  supply  of  hardy 
and  very  mobile  horsemen.  The  existing  Mongol 
tribes,  nomad  pastors  of  Mongolia  in  Central 
.'Xsia,  are  divided   into  Sharras  or  Eastern  Kal- 


?2 


muks,  or  Western  Buriats,  or  Siberian  Mongols, 
and  Tunguses,  including  JVIanchus  (q.v.). 

Montenegrins.  A  Servian  race  of  civilised 
mountaineers,  inhabiting  the  rugged  district 
of  Montenegro  ;  the  only  Balkan  race  which 
preserved  independence  and  Christianity  against 
the  Turkish  conquerors.  Their  history  is  one  of 
constant  warfare  with  the  Turks,  and  they  have 
thus  preserved  the  primitive  virtues  of  the 
warrior  in  great  perfection. 

Moors.  The  ancient  Moors,  or  Mauri,  were  the 
inhabitants  of  the  Roman  province  of  Maure- 
tania,  roughly  including  the  modern  Algeria  and 
Morocco.  They  were  probably  of  mixed  descent, 
partly  Semitic  from  Arabia,  partly  Western 
Hamitic  from  indigenous  sources.  In  modern  times 
the  name  is  applied  ( i )  to  the  invaders  and  con- 
querors of  Spain  in  the  Middle  Ages,  who  were 
mostly  of  Arab  and  Berber  stock  ;  (2)  to  the 
present  inhabitants  of  Morocco  and  the  Barbary 
States,  of  the  same  stocks,  with  a  large  infusion  of 
Sudanese  Negro  blood.  The  Moors  have  always 
been  a  turbulent  and  warlike  people,  who  fur- 
nished the  most  notorious  pirates  of  modern 
history,  thanks  to  their  commanding  position  on 
the  great  highway  of  sea-borne  commerce. 

Moquis.     See  Pueblo  Indians. 

Mordvins.  A  branch  of  the  Finns  ((7.?'.), forming 
small  communities  on  the  banks  of  the  Volga. 

Mosgus.     See  Lake  Chad  Group. 

Mossis.     See  Nigerian  Group. 

Mpongwes.  A  Bantu  Negro  race  on  the  Gaboon 
Estuary  in  French  Equatorial  Africa,  given  to 
drink  and  boasting,  of  little  economic  value, 
though  once  powerful. 

Mulattos.  Half-breeds  between  whites  and 
negroes. 

Mundas.  A  Kolarian  race  of  Lower  Bengal, 
with  possible  traces  of  Negroid  blood. 

Mundrucus.     See  Tupi-Guarani. 

Mundus.     See  Nilitic  Group. 

Mushi-Kongo.  Bantu  Negroes  of  Portuguese 
W^est  Africa,  still  in  an  absolutely  savage  state. 

Muskhogean,  or  Appalachian.  A  group  of 
North  American  Indian  tribes,  formerly  occupy- 
ing the  south-eastern  corner  of  the  present 
United  States,  south  of  Tennessee,  and  east  of 
Arkansas.  Formerly  a  powerful  confederacy  of 
warlike  hunters,  they  are  now  extinct  or  confined 
to  Indian  reservations.  The  chief  tribes  are 
Alibamus,  Apalachis,  Chickasaws,  Choktaws, 
Creeks  or  Muskhogees,  and  Seminoles. 

Mycenieans.  The  inhabitants  of  ancient  My- 
cenae, one  of  the  chief  centres  of  prehistoric 
culture  in  Greece  before  the  Homeric  age. 
Recent  excavations,  at  Mycenae  itself,  at  Cnossos 
in  Crete,  and  other  contemporary  sites  of 
government,  have  thrown  light  on  the  remarkable 
civilisation  which  then  existed.  The  Mycenaeans, 
Cretans,  and  their  kindred  peoples  were  prob- 
ably a  mixed  Caucasic  race,  with  affinities  to  the 
later  Aryan  Achaeans  and  to  the  aboriginal 
Hamitic  Pelasgians  ;  but  nothing  is  yet  certainly 
known  of  their  ethnological  place. 

Nagars.     See  Dards. 

Nagas.  Aborigines  of  the  Naga  Hills,  in  South 
Assam,  semi-savage  and  formerly  accustomed 
to  raid  the  British  provinces  ;  now  under  British 
rule.     They  are  of  Tibetan  stock. 

Nahuans,  or  Mexican  Indians.  The  aboriginal 
inhabitants  of  modern  Mexico,  whose  history 
dates  back  to  the  sixth  century.  The  oldest  of 
the  Nahuan  races  was  that  of  the  Toltecs,  who 

337 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


established  a  civilisation  marked  by  architectural 
and  artistic  monuments  still  existing,  north  of 
the  valley  of  Anahuac.  They  were  followed  by 
the  ruder  Chichimecs  and  the  Aztecs  (q.v.).  Other 
branches  of  the  same  race  are  the  Pipils  and  the 
Niquirans  of  Nicaragua. 

Naimans.  (i)  See  Sharras.  (2)  A  tribe  of 
the  Middle  Horde  of  the  Kazaks.     See  Kirghiz. 

Nairs.  A  Hindu  tribe  of  Malabar,  dis- 
tinguished by  their  peculiar  marriage  customs. 
They  practise  polyandry,  and  a  Nair's  property 
descends  not  to  his  own  but  to  his  sister's 
children. 

Namas  or  Namaquas.  A  Hottentot  tribe  of 
Namaqualand,  the  true  aborigines  and  the 
principal  representatives  of  the  Hottentots  {q.v.). 
Scattered  in  small  pastoral  groups. 

Natchez  Indians.  An  extinct  North  American 
Indian  race,  formerly  inhabiting  the  region  of  the 
Lower  Mississippi. 

Navajos.     See  Athabascan. 

Neanderthal  Man.  A  race  of  primitive  man, 
represented  only  by  a  skull  and  a  few  bones 
found  in  a  limestone  cave  of  the  Neanderthal 
in  Rhenish  Prussia  in  1S56.  The  most  ape-like 
race  yet  known,  and  probably  the  oldest. 

Negritoes.  A  branch  of  Ethiopic  Man,  found 
in  Central  Africa,  and  in  the  Andamans,  the 
Malay  Peninsula  and  the  Philippines,  akin  to 
negroes  but  of  smaller  stature  and  more  ape-like. 
Possibly  the  primitive  stock-  from  which  the 
Negroes  (q.v.)  were  developed. 

Negroes.  The  most  numerous  branch  of 
Ethiopic  Man,  divided  into  African  (Sudanese, 
Bantu,  and  Hottentot-Bushman)  and  Oceanic 
(Papuan,  Melanesian,  and  Australian)  sections. 
American  Negroes  are  descended  from  African 
slaves,  mostly  of  Sudanese  origin.   See  Haytians. 

Nempes.     See  Nigerian  Group. 

Nestorians.  A  Syrian  race,  belonging  to  the 
Arania>an  stock  of  the  Semitic  family,  dis- 
tinguished by  a  special  form  of  Christian  belief, 
who  were  driven  out  of  the  Roman  Empire  in  the 
fifth  century,  and  whose  descendants  now  form  a 
special  community  in  the  mountain  ranges  of 
Kurdistan.  They  are  poor  and  illiterate.  A 
branch  of  Nestorians  is  found  in  Travancore, 
where  they  go  by  the  name  of  Syrian  Christians. 

New  Guinea  Natives,     See  Papuans. 

New  Zealanders.  ( i )  Aborigines  [sec  Maoris]. 
( j)  White  inhabitants  of  New  Zealand,  of  An^lo- 
Sa.xon  descent. 

Nez  Perces.  A  tribe  of  North  American 
Inilians,  in  British  Columbia  and  Idaho,  part  of 
whom  are  well  advanced  in  civilisation. 

Niam-Niam.     See  Azandeh. 

Nicaraguans.  White  natives  of  Nicaragua, 
in  Central  America,  of  Spanish  descent,  with 
Indian  and  negro  elements. 

Nicobarese.  Natives  of  the  Nicobar  Islands, 
of  Malay  blood  mixed  with  that  of  the  Mon- 
golic  aborigines.     Formerly  given  to  piracy. 

Nigerian  Group.  A  group  of  Sudanese  Negro 
tribes,  all  of  allied  stocks,  mhabiting  the  Niger 
Delta,  the  Oil  River,  Lower  Benue,  and  Niger 
region,  including  the  Niger  Bend.  Amongst  them 
are  the  people  of  Benin — noted  for  their  vast 
human  sacritices — the  Abo,  Nempe,  Nupe,  Akasa, 
Qua,  Efik,  Okrika,  Akpa,  Mossi,  Sienereh,  and 
many  other  tribes. 

Nilitic  Group.  Another  group  of  Sudanese 
Negro  tribes,  inhabiting  the  districts  of  the 
White  Nile,  Sobat,  and  the  northern  slopes  of  th^ 


Nile-Congo  divide.  They  include  the  Abaka, 
Abukaya,  Bongo,  ShuU,  Falanj,  Madi,  Bari,  Nuer, 
Shilluk,  Dinka,  Mundu,  Rol,  Mittu,  Krej,  and 
Fertit  tribes.  They  are  mainly  hard-working 
agriculturists,  from  whom  the  British  draw 
material  for  excellent  soldiery. 
Niquirans.  See  Nahuans. 
Nogais.  A  race  of  Caucasian  Tartars  (q.v.) 
inhabiting  the  steppes  of  the  Kuma  River  ; 
nomadic    cattle-breeders. 

Normans.  Natives  of  Normandy,  descended 
from  the  Norsemen  (q.v.)  who  settled  on  the 
French  coast  under  Rolf  the  Ganger  in  the 
beginning  of  the  tenth  century.  The  history  of 
the  Normans,  who  conquered  England  and 
Sicily,  is  well  known.  The  modern  Normans 
still  preserve  many  signs  of  their  Scandinavian 
ancestry,  which  distinguish  them  from  their 
French  or  Breton  neighbours. 

Norsemen  or  Northmen.  A  name  given  in  the 
Middle  Ages  to  the  piratical  emigrants  from 
Denmark,  Iceland,  Sweden,  and  Norway,  who 
descended  on  the  coasts  of  England,  France, 
Germany,  and  Southern  Europe.  They  called 
themselves  Vikings.  These  sea-rovers  came,  in 
the  first  instance,  for  portable  plunder,  but  in 
many  cases  they  were  tempted  by  the  look  of  the 
more  fertile  lands  of  the  south  to  make  settle- 
ments, among  which  those  of  the  Danes  in 
England  and  Ireland  and  of  the  Norwegians  in 
Normandy,  England,  and  Sicily  were  the  most 
lasting  and  important. 

Norwegians.  A  branch  of  the  Scandinavian 
stock  of  the  Aryan  family.  They  are  probably 
descended  from  Teutonic  immigrants — perhaps 
of  Gothic  race — who  entered  the  Scandinavian 
peninsula  in  prehistoric  times,  and  drove  out  the 
aboriginal  Lapps  or  Finns.  Another  theory 
makes  Scandinavia  the  original  home  of  the 
Aryans,  of  whom,  on  this  view,  the  Norwegians 
would  represent  the  primitive  stock.  Their  his- 
tory begins  in  the  ninth  century,  when  a  Nor- 
wegian kingdom  was  established  by  Harold 
Fairhair.  The  old  Norwegians  were  extremely 
warlike  and  piratical  [see  Norsemen].  Their 
modern  descendants  are  a  peaceful  and  in- 
dustrious race,  the  most  simple  and  democratic 
people  of  Europe,  who  recently  threw  off  the 
Swedish  rule  and  re-established  the  ancient 
Norwegian  kingdom. 

Nsakkaras.     See  Welle  Group. 

Nuba  Group.  A  group  of  Sudanese  Negro 
tribes,  occupying  Nubia,  Dar-Fur,  and  Kordofan, 
in  the  Egyptian  Sudan.  They  include  the  Furs, 
Nubas,  Nile  Nubians,  Tumalis,  Kargos,  Kulfans, 
Kolajis,  and  Kunjaras.  They  are  an  active  and 
warlike  race,  in  which  the  primitive  Negro  blood 
has  frequently  been  modified  by  Semitic  (Arab) 
and  Hamitic  influences.  They  supply  many  of 
our  Sudanese  regiments. 

Nubians.  Ancient  inhabitants  of  Nubia, 
probably  identical  with  Ethiopians  (q.v.),  but 
modified  by  the  infusion  of  Negro  blood.  They 
established  a  Nubian  kingdom  in  the  Upper  Nile 
basin  about  the  sixth  century. 

Nuers.     See  Nilitic  Group. 

Numidians.  An  ancient  Hamitic  race,  in- 
habiting the  district  now  known  as  Algeria. 
They  were  fine  horsemen,  warlike,  but 
treacherous,  and  were  conquered  by  Rome 
B.C.  46.     See  Berbers. 

Nupcs.     See  Nigerian  Group. 


AN    ALPHABET    OF    THE    WORLD'S    RACES 


Nutkas.  A  collective  name  given  to  the 
Indian  tribes  of  Vancouver  Island  and  the 
adjoining  districts  of  British  Columbia. 

Obongos.  A  Bushman-like  race  of  pygmy 
Negritoes  discovered  by  Du  Chaillu  on  the 
western  coast  of  equatorial  Africa,  physically  and 
mentally  degenerate. 

Ojibbeways.     See  Algonquian. 

Okrikas.     See  Nigerian  Group. 

Olkhonese.  A  tribe  of  Buriats  (^.y.)  inhabit- 
ing the  district  of  Lake  Baikal. 

Omaguas.     See  Tupi-Guarani. 

Omahas.     See  Siouan. 

Onondagas.     See  Iroquoian. 

Opata-Pima.  A  group  of  Central  American 
Indian  races,  allied  to  the  Nahuan  group  {q-v.), 
but  of  lower  mental  and  physical  type.  It 
includes  the  Cora,  Yuma,  Papago,  Tarahumara 
and  Tepeguana  tribes. 

Orang-Benua,  Orang-Lauts.     See  Malays. 

Ordos.     See  Sharras. 

Orochs.  A  nomadic  tribe  of  the  Siberian 
Tunguses  (q.v.). 

Osages.     See  Siouan. 

Oscans.  A  primitive  Italic  race  inhabiting 
Campania,  who  were  conquered  by  and  amalga- 
mated with  the  Samnites  (q.v.)  in  the  fifth 
century,  B.C.  Their  language  was  a  ruder  form 
of  Latin. 

Osmanlis.     See  Turks. 

Ossets.  An  isolated  Aryan  race  inhabiting 
the  Central  Caucasus,  and  differing  in  language 
and  customs  from  their  Caucasian  neighbours. 
They  are  probably  allied  to  the  Iranian  stock, 
though  some  suppose  them  to  be  descended 
from  Gothic  settlers. 

Ostrogoths.     See  Goths. 

Ostyaks.  A  Ugrian  race  of  Mongolic  physical 
type,  a"ied  to  the  Samoyedes  [q.v.),  inhabiting 
the  Obi  basin  in  Western  Siberia.  They  are  mainly 
nomads,  hunters  and  reindeer  breeders.  They 
are  kind,  gentle  and  honest,  and  show  consider- 
able artistic  power. 

Otoes.     See  Siouan. 

Otomis.  An  Indian  race  of  Mexico,  assumed  on 
linguistic  grounds  to  represent  the  oldest  of 
American  Indian  stocks. 

Ottomans.     See  Turks. 

Ovaherero.     See  Hereros. 

Ovampos.  The  chief  Bantu  Negro  race  of 
German  South-west  Africa,  tall  and  well- 
proportioned,  with  regular  features — a  fine 
Negro  type.  They  are  industrious  agricul- 
turists, given  to  raiding  and  inter-tribal  warfare. 

Oworos,  Oyos.     See  Yorubas. 

Pampas  Indians.     See  Puelches. 

Pangasinans.  A  semi -civilised  Malayan  race 
in  the  Philippine  Islands. 

Papagos.     See  Opata-pima. 

Papuans.  The  savage  aborigines  of  New 
Guinea  and  the  neighbouring  islands  of  the 
Torres  Strait  and  East  Malaysia.  They  belong 
to  the  Oceanic  division  of  Ethiopic  Man,  and 
are  allied  to  the  African  Negro,  though  they  stand 
at  a  somewhat  higher  intellectual  level.  They 
are  of  Negroid  physical  type,  characterised 
specially  by  their  mops  of  frizzy  hair  ;  colour, 
a  sooty  brown  to  black,  with  projecting  jaws, 
thick  lips  and  retreating  foreheads  ;  nose  some- 
times flat,  but  oftener  hooked  and  of  Jewish 
appearance.  The  race  has  probably  been 
modified  by  Malayan  and  Polynesian  inter- 
mixture.      Probably   the   Melanesians   and   the 


Australian  aborigines  are  closely  related  to  the 
Papuans.  They  are  a  fierce  and  treacherous 
race,  hostile  to  strangers,  and  given  to  canni- 
balism and  head-hunting.  They  show  much 
agricultural  skill,  and  in  some  cases  are  suscept- 
ible of  European  civilisation. 

Paraguay  Indians.     See  Tupi-Guarani. 

Parsees.  Followers  of  Zoroaster,  of  Persian 
descent,  who  have  settled  in  India,  chiefly  near 
Bombay,  where  they  have  become  one  of  the 
most  thriving  sections  of  the  community,  owing 
to  their  marked  ability  for  commerce.  A 
small  remnant  of  Parsees,  known  as  Guebres, 
is  still  to  be  found  in  Persia  itself. 

Partkians.  A  warlike  people  of  the  ancient 
world,  inhabiting  a  district  of  Northern  Persia. 
They  seem  to  have  been  of  Scythian  (q.v.) 
descent,  and  were  noted  for  their  habit  of  fight- 
ing on  horseback  and  discharging  their  most 
fatal  arrows  whilst  in  pretended  flight.  Under 
Mithridates  (171-138  b.c),  the  Parthians  became 
supreme  in  Persia,  and  afterwards  warred  for  long 
successfully  with  the  Romans. 

Patagonians  or  Tehuelches.  Natives  of  the 
most  southerly  region  of  the  American  continent, 
noted  for  their  great  stature,  in  many  cases 
approaching  the  gigantic.  They  are  one  of  the 
physically  strongest  races  of  the  earth,  of  a 
yellowish  brown  colour,  with  well-formed  and 
regular  features.  They  are  nomadic  tribes  of 
Araucanian  (q.v.)  descent,  who  live  by  fishing  and 
hunting  ;  and  peacefully  disposed  to  strangers. 

Pathans.     See  Afghans. 

Payaguas.  A  South  American  Indian  race, 
in  the  Argentine,  whose  wealth  of  silver  orna- 
ments gave  a  name  to  the  Rio  de  la  Plata. 

Pawnees.  A  brave  warlike  trib?  of  North 
American  Indians,  akin  to  the  Shoshonean 
group  (q.v.)  and  formerly  settled  in  Nebraska. 

Pechenegs.  An  ancient  Mongolic  race  of 
Turki  stock,  a  branch  of  the  Kipchaks  (q.v.). 

Pelasgians.  The  pre-Aryan  inhabitants  of 
Greece,  apparently  the  aborigines  of  that 
country,  who  were  dispossessed  by  the  Aryan 
Hellenes.  Little  or  nothing  is  known  of  their 
racial  characteristics  and  affinities  ;  but  the 
excavations  recently  made  at  Mycena?,  Knossos, 
etc.,  show  that  they  had  reached  a  high  stage  of 
civilisation  in  prehistoric  times  on  the  ^gean 
coast.  Probably  a  branch  of  the  Western 
Hamitic  family,  resembling  Berbers  (q.v.)  in 
physical  type.  See  Mycen.^ans  and  Etruscans. 

Permians.  A  branch  of  the  Finnish  race, 
inhabiting  the  district  of  Perm  in  Russia,  and 
closely  resembling  the  Karelians  (q.v.). 

Persians.  The  ancient  Persians  were  the 
main  branch  of  the  Iranian  stock  of  the  Aryan 
family,  a  civilised  and  warlike  nation,  who 
taught  their  sons  "  to  ride,  to  shoot  with  the  bow, 
and  to  speak  the  truth."  They  reared  a  great 
empire  under  Cyrus  (b.c.  537)  and  his  successors, 
which  was  destroyed  by  Alexander  the  Great 
and  divided  in  324  B.C.  The  modern  Persians, 
known  as  Tajiks,  and  as  Tats  on  the  west  of  the 
Caspian,  are  the  descendants  of  the  ancient 
Persians  with  a  considerable  admixture  of 
alien  blood,  due  to  a  long  period  of  Arab  and 
Turkish  domination.  They  present  a  fine  Aryan 
type,  however,  and  are  cultivated  and  com- 
mercial, though  not  warlike. 

Peruvian  Indians.     See  Incas. 

Peruvians.  White  natives  of  Peru,  partly  of  pure 
Spanish  descent,  partly  crossed  with  Indian  blood. 

339 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Philippine  Islander^.  The  natives  of  the 
Philippines  belong  to  three  distinct  races — 
Negritoes,  Indonesians  and  Malays.  The 
Negritoes  are  knowTi  as  Aetas  (q.v.).  The  Indone- 
sians are  confined  to  the  island  of  Mindanao  ; 
they  are  light-skinned,  tall  and  well-developed 
physically.  Their  chief  tribe  is  that  of  the 
Igorrotes.  The  Malays  are  brown-skinned, 
with  black  hair  and  flat  noses,  being  crossed 
with  Negrito  blood.  Their  chief  tribes  are  the 
Visayans,  Tagalogs,  Bicols,  Ilocanos,  Cayagans, 
Pangasinans  and  Pampangas.  These  are  all 
Christianised  and  fairly  civilised.  The  interior 
is  occupied  by  wild  and  savage  tribes  of  similar 
race,  and  by  the  dwarfish  and  nomadic  Negritoes. 
Many  of  these  tribes  practise  head-hunting, 
cannibalism,  and  human  sacrifices.  The  more 
civilised  tribes,  with  the  Spanish-Indian  half- 
breeds,  known  as  Filipinos,  are  turbulent  and 
lawless,  the  source  of  much  trouble  to  the  new 
American  as  to  the  old  Spanish  rulers. 

Philistines.  An  ancient  race  inhabiting  the 
Mediterranean  seaboard  to  the  south-west  of 
Juda>a,  who  warred  much  with  the  Israelites, 
and  were  finally  subdued  by  them.  They  were 
probably  a  Canaanitish  people,  belonging  to  the 
Semitic  family  ;  but  some  regard  them  as  an 
immigrant  Hamitic  race,  perhaps  related  to  the 
Cretans  or  Pelasgians.  The  assumed  inferiority 
of  their  culture  to  that  of  the  Israelites  has  given 
rise  to  the  modern  use  of  "  Philistine  "  as  a  term 
of  reproach. 

Phoenicians.  The  greatest  '  seafaring  and 
trading  nation  of  aucicnt  times,  and  the  earliest 
of  Mediterranean  sea-powers.  A  branch  of  the 
Canaanite  stock  of  the  Semitic  family,  they 
inhabited  the  Mediterranean  coast  between 
Latakia  and  Acre,  their  chief  cities  being  Tyre 
and  Sidon.  They  possessed  a  remarkable 
polytheistic  religion,  disfigured  by  human  sacri- 
fices. They  were  an  inventive  race,  to  whom  we 
owe  glass  and  Tyrian  purple.  They  seem  to  have 
entered  PhcEnicia  from  the  direction  of  the  Red 
Sea  in  prehistoric  times,  and  were  at  first  subject 
to  Egypt,  but  about  13CX)  B.C.  reared  a  great 
maritime  empire,  which  endured  for  nearly  a 
thousand  years  and  was  destroyed  by  Alexander 
the  Great.  Thcj^  were  the  great  traders  of  the 
ancient  world,  and  carried  on  a  commerce  which 
ranged  from  Cornwall  to  Ceylon  and  Senegal.  The 
Carthaginians  (q.v.)  were  a  colony  of  Phoenicians. 

Phrygians.  An  ancient  pastoral  people  of 
Asia  Mmor,  closely  related  to  the  Armenians 
(q.v.),  who  were  absorbed  by  the  Persians  in  the 
sixth  century  B.C. 

Picts.  The  aborigines  of  ancient  Scotland,  a 
short,  round-headed,  dark  race,  probably  a 
branch  of  the  Iberian  stock  of  the  Western 
Hamitic  family,  and  thus  closely  related  to  the 
Basques  (q.v.)-  The  Picts  were  a  wild  and  warlike 
race,  who  harassed  the  Roman  province  of 
Britain,  and  were  exterminated  by  the  invading 
Scots  from  Ireland  in  the  early  part  of  the 
Christian  era.  The  whole  Pictish  problem  is 
still  unsolved  by  ethnologists,  some  of  whom 
hold  that  the  Picts  were  a  Celtic  race,  allied  to 
the  modern  Welsh  or  to  the  Scottish  Highlanders 
of  to-day. 

Picuris.     See  Pueblo  Indians. 

Pipits.     See  Nahuans. 

Pitcairn  Islanders.  Half-breed  descendants  of 
Englishmen  (the  mutineers  of  the  "  Bounty  ") 
and  Tahitian  women.  A  peaceful  and  idyllic  race. 


Pocomans,  Poconches.     See  Maya-Quiche. 

Poles.  A  stock  of  the  Western  Slavonic 
family,  originally  dwelling  between  the  Vistula 
and  the  Oder.  In  the  tenth  century  Poland 
became  an  independent  European  Power,  and 
remained  an  elective  kingdom  down  to  its 
partition  in  the  eighteenth  century  between 
Russia,  Austria  and  Prussia.  The  Polish 
peasantry  have  always  been  industrious  and 
successful  agriculturists,  whilst  the  nobility  were 
turbulent  and  warlike.  The  Poles  who  live  under 
Austrian  and  German  rule  are  fairly  contented, 
but  those  of  Russian  Poland  have  carried  on  a 
long  and  often  bloody  series  of  struggles  for 
liberty.  Of  late  years,  Russian  Poland  has 
become  a  manufacturing  country,  under  German 
influence.  The  Poles  have  a  considerable  litera- 
ture, and  are  eminently  musical. 

Polynesians.  The  chief  stock  of  the  Indo- 
nesian (q.v)  family,  the  tall,  brown-skinned  race 
of  Caucasic  type  who  inhabit  the  chief  islands 
of  the  Eastern  Pacific,  and  are  generally  known 
as  South  Sea  Islanders.  Their  chief  races 
are  the  Maoris  (q.v.)  of  New  Zealand,  the 
Marquesans,  Tahitians,  Tongans  and  Samoans, 
besides  the  natives  of  Easter,  Gambler,  Hervey, 
and  other  smaller  islands.  They  are  of  tall 
stature — onl}'  surpassed  by  the  Patagonians — 
muscular  frame,  regular  and  often  handsome 
features,  with  brown  skins,  square  jaws,  and 
broad  skulls.  They  probably  originated  in 
Malaysia,  where  they  are  still  represented  by  the 
Battaks  of  North  Sumatra,  some  Dyak  races, 
and  certain  tribes  of  the  Philippines  and  Gilolo. 
They  are  a  gay,  pleasure-loving  people,  formerly 
addicted  to  cannibalism,  but  otherwise  of  pleasing 
manners,  and  are  now  rapidly  acquiring  civilisa- 
tion, though  their  numbers  are  everywhere 
decreasing  under  the  influence  of  European 
manners  and  diseases. 

Poncas.     See  Siouan. 

Portuguese.  Natives  of  Portugal,  a  mixed 
race,  probably  of  Iberian  or  Basque  origin,  with 
later  Celtic  elements.  After  falling  successively 
under  Roman,  Visigothic,  and  Saracen  domitiion, 
they  formed  an  independent  kingdom  in  the 
twelfth  century.  The  early  Portuguese  were 
enterprising  seamen,  who  contributed  largely  to 
the  exploration  of  the  world,  and  founded  many 
colonies  in  Africa,  which  they  still  possess. 
Brazil  is  their  chief  American  settlement,  now 
independent. 

Provencals.  Natives  of  Provence,  in  the 
South  of  France.  Their  primitive  Ligurian  (q.v.) 
stock  was  modified  by  man^^  successive  influences, 
such  as  the  Greek  colonists,  who  founded  Mar- 
seilles, the  Roman  settlers  in  the  Provincia 
(Provence),  and,  later,  Gothic  and  Saracen 
invaders.  The  Provencals  are  a  gay,  impulsive 
and  pleasure-loving  people,  markedly  distinct 
from  the  more  staid  and  industrious  inhabitants 
of  Northern  France. 

Pruczi,  or  Old  Prussians.     See  Lettic. 

Prussians.  The  earliest  inhabitants  of  Prussia 
were  Slavonic  tribes  [see  Lettic].  The  modern 
Prussians,  the  dominant  race  of  the  German 
Empire,  belong  to  the  High  German  branch  of 
the  Teutonic  stock. 

Pueblo  Indians.  A  semi-civilised  race  of 
North  American  Indians,  dwelling  in  New 
Mexico  and  Arizona.  They  inhabit  "  pueblos," 
or  huge  houses,  often  large  enough  to  contain  a 
whole    tribe    under    one    roof.       They    possess 


WOMEN     OF     THE     NUPE    TRIBE     IN     NIGERIA 

The  Nupe  tribe  is  a  family  belonging  to  the  Nigerian  group  of  Sudanese  Negroes.      They  inhabit  chiefly  the  town 

of  Lokoja,  in  West  Africa.     [See  under  Nigerian  group]. 


THE    AINUS,     PROBABLY    THE    ORIGINAL     INHABITANTS    OF    JAPAN 

The  Ainus  are  a  declining  race,  now  confined  to  a  small  area  in  the  Far  East.    They  have,  as  is  seen  in  this  picture, 

handsome  features  and  an  abundance  of  hair.      [See  page  312]. 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


interesting  religious  and  social  customs,  much 
studied  by  anthropologists.  Their  chief  tribes  are 
theZunis.Teguas,  Taos,  Picuris,  and  Tusayas.  The 
Moquis  of  Arizona  are  closely  related  to  them. 

Puelches.  or  Pampas  Indians.  A  strongly- 
built,  dark-skinned  race  of  South  American 
Indians,  who  inhabit  the  great  plains  or  pampas 
from  the  Saladillo  to  the  Rio  Negro  in  Argentina. 
They  are  expert  horsemen,  from  whom  the 
Gauchos  iq.v.)  are  derived. 

Punjabis.  Natives  of  the  Punjab,  in  North- 
West  India,  mostly  Jats  and  Sikhs  (^.w.)  belonging 
to  the  Hindu  stock  of  the  Aryan  family.  An 
agricultural  and  warlike  people. 

Puntis.     See  Chinese. 

Pygmies.  Dwarfish  Negrito  races  of  Central 
.Africa,  long  considered  to  be  mythical,  but  now 
well  known  to  ethnologists.  They  include  the 
Akkas  and  W'ochuas  of  the  Welle  Basin,  the 
Obongos  of  the  Gaboon,  the  Batwas  of  South 
Congo,  etc.  In  very  early  times  they  were 
known  by  repute  to  the  Egyptians — on  whose 
monuments  they  appear  in  the  thirty-fourth 
century  B.C. — and  the  Greeks.  They  live  by  the 
chase  in  the  Central  African  forests,  and  use 
poisoned  arrows.  Other  small  races,  .such  as  the 
Bushmen,  Lapps,  Kalangs,  Samangs,  etc.,  have 
contributed  to  the  fame  of  the  Pygmies. 

Quas.  A  Sudanese  Negro  tribe  on  the  Ivory 
Coast,  belonging  to  the  Nigerian  group  {q.v.). 

Quapaws.     Sec  Siouan. 

Queahs.     See  Liberian  Group. 

Quiches.  A  race  of  Central  American  Indians 
in  Guatemala,  rivalling  the  Aztecs  in  the 
possession  of  an  ancient  civilisation  and  a  curious 
mvthology.      See  Maya-Quiche. 

Quichuas.     See  Incas. 

Rajputs.  The  predominant  race  of  Raj- 
putana,  in  Central  India,  belonging  to  the  Hindu 
stock  of  the  Aryan  family.  They  are  a  proud  and 
warlike  aristocracy  of  soldiers  and  landowners, 
who  rule  many  native  states,  of  which  Jaipur, 
Jodhpur  and  Udaipur  are  the  most  important. 

Ramas.     See  Lencan. 

Redskins.  A  term  given  in  common  parlance 
to  North  American  Indians,  from  their  colour. 

Rejangs.  A  Malayan  race  of  Sumatra,  akin 
to  the  .Acliinese  iq.v.). 

Rols.     See  Nilitic  Group. 

Romans.  The  most  powerful  and  warlike,  and 
in  every  sense  the  greatest  race  of  ancient 
luirope,  who  acquired  the  dominion  of  the 
Western  world,  and  laid  the  foundations  of 
modern  civilisation.  The  city  of  Rome  was 
founded  by  Alban  shepherds,  of  Latin  (q.v.)  race, 
in  the  eighth  century  B.C.  Oscan,  Sabine, 
Samnite,  and  Umbrian  iq.v.)  elements  were 
added  to  the  original  stock,  and  thus  the  great 
Roman  character  was  moulded.  Rome  later 
extended  her  power  over  the  whole  of  Italy,  and 
then  over  the  whole  of  the  known  world. 

Romance  Races.     See  Latin  Races. 

Romansch.  Natives  of  the  Grisons  in  Switzer- 
land, speaking  a  Romance  dialect,  and  probably 
of  Italic  race. 

Roumanians,  or  Vlachs.  Natives  of  the 
modern  Roumanian  kingdom,  the  leading 
Balkan  State,  composed  of  the  older  principali- 
ties of  Wallachia  and  Moldavia,  which  were  long 
subject  to  the  Turks.  The  Vlachs  (Wallachs,  a 
name  akin  to  our  Welsh)  are  probably  descended 
from  the  Latin-speaking  inhabitants  of  the 
ancitiit   Roman   province   of  Dacia,   a   tribe   of 


Thracian  descent,  which  was  subjugated  by 
Trajan  in  the  second  century.  They  have 
preserved  their  language,  but  their  blood  has 
been  mingled  with  that  of  numerous  conquerors — 
Goths,  Huns,  Slovenians,  Albanians,  Turks,  etc. 
The  Roumanian  peasantry  are  a  hardy  and 
thrifty  race,  retaining  their  old  warlike  traditions. 

Rucuyennes.     See  Caries. 

Russians.  The  chief  of  the  Slavonic  races 
inhabiting  European  Russia,  and  divided  into 
Great,  White,  and  Little  Russians.  The  physical 
distinction  between  these  races  is  attributed  to 
the  mixture  of  the  primitive  Russian  stock 
respectively  with  Finnish,  Lithuanian,  and 
Turkish  blood.  The  original  Russians  belonged 
to  the  Slavonic  stock  of  the  Aryan  family,  and 
seem  to  have  been  settled  in  prehistoric  times 
between  the  Danube,  the  Elbe,  and  the  south 
coast  of  the  Baltic.  Thus  they  must  have 
entered  Russia  from  the  west  in  the  early 
centuries  of  our  era.  There  they  conquered  and 
drove  out  or  assimilated  the  aborigines  of 
Northern  Mongolic  (Finno-Turkish)  stock,  and 
established  a  number  of  small  states,  agricultural 
in  character,  which  long  suffered  from  Tartar 
invasion,  notably  that  of  the  Golden  Horde 
[see  Kipchaks],  and  were  gradually  moulded 
into  a  single  kingdom,  with  Moscow  for  its 
capital.  Modern  Russia,  with  its  vast  Asiatic 
dependencies,  is  one  of  the  greatest  Empires  in 
the  world,  but  it  is  in  a  state  of  transition,  and 
its  civilisation  is  consequently  backward.  The 
Russian  peasants  are  very  patient,  industrious, 
and  thrifty.  When  well  led,  they  are  admirable 
soldiers.     Their  chief  occupation  is  agriculture. 

Ruthenians.  A  branch  of  the  Little  Russian 
race,  who  inhabit  the  district  of  the  Carpathians 
in  Galicia  and  Hungary  ;  poor,  but  hardy 
cultivators  of  the  soil. 

Sabaeans.     See  Himyarites. 

Sabines.  An  ancient  Italic  race,  who  in- 
habited the  district  between  the  Central  Apen- 
nines— their  ancestral  home — and  Rome.  The 
Samnites  were  their  descendants  or  near  kins- 
men, and  the  Umbrians  were  less  closely  related 
to  them.  When  Rome  was  founded  there  was 
a  strong  Sabine  element  in  its  population,  as 
indicated  by  the  story  of  the  Rape  of  the  Sabine 
Women,  and  the  statement  that  several  of  the 
early  kings  of  Rome  were  of  Sabine  blood.  The 
Sabines  and  Samnites  warred  against  Rome 
for  many  years,  but  both  were  ultimately  sub- 
dued and  incorporated  in  the  Roman  State. 

Sac  Indians.     See  Algonquian. 

Sakais,  or  Samangs.  An  aboriginal  Negrito 
race  of  the  Malay  Peninsula  ;  a  wild  and  un- 
civilised people,  with  black  skins  and  woolly 
hair,  often  approaching  the  ape-like  in  physical 
development  and  intelligence. 

Sakalavas.  One  of  the  principal  groups  of 
the  Malagasy  tribes,  inhabiting  the  west  coast 
of  Madagascar  ;  of  mixed  Malay  and  negro 
blood,  and  akin  to  the  Hovas  (q.v.). 

Salish.     See  Flatheads. 

Samangs.     See  Sakais. 

Sambos,  or  Zambos.  Half-breeds  sprung  from 
Negro  and   Indian  parents. 

Samnites.     Sec  Sauines. 

Samoans.  A  Polynesian  (q.v.)  race,  of  fine 
physical  development,  lazy  and  pleasure-loving, 
inhabiting  the  Samoan  group  of  islands. 

Samoyedes.  A  Finno-Ugrian  race,  inhabiting 
the  Obi  basin  in  Siberia,  once  widely  spread  over 


AN    ALPHABET    OF    THE    WORLD'S    RACES 


the  extreme  north  of  Europe  and  Asia.  They 
are  short  and  dark  haired,  with  Monf;oUc  features, 
brave  and  honest,  hve  by  hunting  and  hshing, 
and  are  still  in  the  Stone  Age. 

Samsams.  A  mixed  Malayo-Siamese  race, 
forming  a  large  part  of  the  population  of  the 
Malayan  States  of  Kedah  and  Ligor. 

Santals.  A  negro-like  aboriginal  tribe  of 
Orissa  in  India,  agiculturists,  of  the  Kolarian 
family  (q.v.). 

Saracens.  A  term  applied  in  the  Middle  Ages 
to  the  Moslem  enemies  of  Christendom,  especially 
to  the  nomadic  Arabs  and  Bedouins  of  the 
Syrian  deserts. 

Saras.     See  Lake  Chad  Group. 

Sarakoles.     See  Mandingan. 

Sards,  or  Sardinians.  The  aboriginal  inhabi- 
tants of  Sardinia,  probably  of  the  Western 
Hamitic  family,  akin  to  the  Iberians  or 
Ligurians  (q.v.).  The  modern  Sartlinians  are 
descended  from  this  race,  with  considerable 
admixtures  of  alien  blood  from  the  Carthaginian, 
Roman;  Saracen,  Spanish  and  Italian  owners 
of  the  island  in  successive  periods. 

Sarmatians.  An  ancient  nomadic  and  war- 
like people,  probably  akin  to  the  Scythians 
(q.v.),  who  roamed  over  the  wide  plains  of 
Eastern  Europe.  Fine  horsemen.  They  were 
destroyed  by  the  Goths  in  the  fourth  century, 
and  disappeared  from  history. 

Sassaks.  Natives  of  Lombok  in  the  Sunda 
Islands,  of  Malayan  race. 

Savoyards.  Natives  of  Savoy,  originally  a 
short,  round-skulled,  dark  race,  akin  to  the 
Auvergnats  (q.v.),  now  largely  mingled  with 
Teutonic  blood. 

Saxons.  ( i )  The  Old  Saxons  originally  in- 
habited the  estuary  of  the  Elbe  and  the  neigh- 
bouring islands.  They  were  a  warlike  race,  of 
Low  German  stock,  whose  name  is  said  to  be 
derived  from  the  "  Saxes,"  or  heavy  knives 
which  they  used  in  war.  They  were  one  of  the 
most  adventurous  of  Teutonic  races,  and  made 
many  piratical  and  colonising  excursions,  of 
which  the  most  important  was  their  settlement 
in  Britain  in  the  fifth  century,  where  they  united 
with  the  Angles  (q.v.)  to  lay  the  foundation  of 
the  modern  English  people.  (2)  The  Saxons  who 
remained  on  the  Continent  gradually  extended 
their  dominion  till  it  reached  modern  Saxony. 
Under  Charlemagne  the  Saxon  power  was  sub- 
ordinated to  that  of  the  Franks.  Saxony  later 
became  an  independent  duchy,  which  is  still 
one  of  the  chief  States  of  the  German 
Empire.  The  modern  Saxons  are  less  adventurous 
than  their  ancestors,  very  industrious,  and 
successful  in  agriculture  and  industry,  and  make 
excellent  soldiers. 

Scandinavians.  A  main  stock  of  the  Aryan 
family,  sometimes  classed  as  a  branch  of  the 
Teutonic  stock,  including  the  Icelanders,  Norwe- 
gians, Danes  and  Swedes,  as  well  as  the  old 
Norsemen  and  Normans  (q.v.).  Some  ethnolo- 
gists regard  them  as  the  original  stock  of  the 
Aryan  family.  They  are  tall,  blue-eyed,  fair- 
haired,  warlike,  and  good  sailors  and  colonists. 

Scots  or  Scotch.  ( i )  The  ancient  Scots  were 
a  Celtic  race,  belonging  to  the  Goidelic  or 
Q  Celts  (q.v.),  originally  settled  in  Ireland — the 
ancient  Scotia — whence  they  made  settlem  nts 
in  the  fifth  century  in  modern  Scotland,  to  which 
they  gave  their  name.  They  were  gradually 
driven    back    into    the    Highlands    by    Anglo- 


Saxon,  Norman  and  Danish  invaders,  and  are 
now  represented  by  the  Highlanders  (q.v.)  or 
Gaels.  (2)  The  modern  Scots,  or  Lowland 
Scots,  are  mainly  of  Anglo-Saxon  race,  modified 
by  Norman,  Danish,  and  Flemish  elements. 
They  are  one  of  the  finest  and  most  hardy  and 
industrious  races  in  the  world,  equally  successful 
in  the  arts  of  war  and  peace. 

Scythians.  An  ancient  nomadic  and  warlike 
race;  found  in  the  seventh  century  B.C.  on  the 
vast  plains  of  South-eastern  Europe,  where  they 
lived  by  cattle-breeding  and  raiding.  They 
dwelt  in  tent-covered  waggons,  fought  on  horse- 
back with  bows  and  arrows,  and  made  drinking- 
cups  of  their  enemies'  skulls.  Their  origin  is  in 
dispute.  Some  regard  them  as  a  Mongolic  race, 
which  was  modified  by  association  with  Aryan 
races,  and  others  as  an  Aryan  stock  ;  their 
kinsmen,  the  Sarmatians  (q.v.),  were  almost 
certainly  Aryans.  They  made  several  incursions 
into  Asia,  where  they  conquex'ed  a  large  tract 
of  Northern  India  and  established  a  kingdom 
which  lasted  till  about  the  fourth  century  a.d. 
The  Rajputs  and  Jats  (q.v.)  are  sometimes  held 
to  be  their  descendants. 

Selengese.     See  Buriats. 

Seljuks.  A  warlike  Turkish  people  who  were 
settled  on  the  Jaxartes  in  the  eleventh  century 
and  afterwards  founded  a  considerable  empire 
in  Western  Asia.     See  Turks. 

Seminoles.     See  Muskhogean. 

Semites.  An  important  family  of  Caucasic 
Man,  who  probably  originated  in  North  Africa, 
from  a  similar  stock  to  that  of  the  Hamites. 
They  are  characterised  by  fine  regular  features, 
large  aquiline  noses,  black  eyes  and  hair,  white 
skins,  long  skulls  and  square  jaws.  They  are 
very  intellectual,  though  less  practical  than  the 
Aryan  type  ;  poets,  prophets,  and  dreamers, 
rather  than  men  of  action.  They  have  given  the 
world  its  two  greatest  religions — Christianity 
and  Islam.  Their  chief  divisions  are  Assyrians, 
Aramaeans,  Canaanites,  Arabs  and  Himyarites 
(q.v.).  In  the  modern  world  they  are  best  known 
from  the  ubiquitous  Jews  (q.v.). 

Seneca  Indians.     See  Iroquoian. 

Serbs.     See  Servians. 

Serers.  Sudanese  Negroes  inhabiting  Sene- 
gambia  in  the  Cape  Verde  district.  They  are 
the  tallest  of  Negro  races,  with  herculean  frames, 
and  are  akin  to  the  Wolofs  (q.v.) 

Servians,  or  Serbs.  A  race  of  Southern  Sla- 
vonic stock,  now  inhabiting  Scrvia.  They  were  at 
first  identical  with  the  Croats  (q.v.),  and  seem  to 
have  originated  in  the  Carpathian  district, 
whence  they  migrated  into  the  Balkan  peninsula 
in  the  seventh  century.  The  Serbs  then  separated 
from  the  Croats,  and  in  the  twelfth  century 
founded  a  powerful  Servian  kingdom,  which  was 
conquered  by  the  Turks  in  the  fifteenth.  The 
Servians  recovered  their  independence  in  1830, 
under  Milosh  Obrcnovitch.  The  Servians  are  a 
well-built  race,  proud  and  martial  in  tempera- 
ment, quick-tempered  and  prone  to  deeds  of 
violence,  as  their  recent  revolution  witnessed. 

Shangallas.  A  mixed  negroid  race  of  the 
Abyssinian  slopes.  Sudanese  Negroes  with  a 
Hamitic  infusion. 

Shans.  Natives  of  the  independent  Shan 
States,  lying  to  the  north  of  Siam.  They  are 
identical  with  the  Laos,  and  closely  related  to  the 
Siamese  (q.v.).  They  belong  to  the  Irwfo-Chinese 
stock  of  the  Southern  Mongolic  family,  and  are 

343 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


probably  descended  from  an  aboriginal  race  of 
China,  which  appeared  on  the  Upper  Lawadi 
about  2,000  years  ago.  They  are  a  peaceful, 
pieasure-loving  people,  mainly  agricultural,  but 
not  un warlike.  They  have  a  sallow  skin  and 
Mongoloid  features. 

Shftrras,  or  Eastern  Mongols.  A  branch  of  the 
Mongol  stock  of  the  Northern  Mongolic  family. 
They  are  a  nomad,  tent-dwelling,  pastoral  race, 
who  roam  over  the  great  steppes  of  Central 
Asia.  They  include  the  Khalkas,  north  of  the 
Gobi  Desert,  the  Tanguts  of  Northern  Tibet,  the 
Chakars,  Barins,  Durbans,  Uruts,  Naimans, 
and  Ordos  south  of  the  Gobi.  They  are  descended 
from  thr-  older  Mongols  {q.v.),  whom  they  re- 
semble in  physical  type. 

SKftwnees.     See  Algonquian. 

Skilluks.     See  Nilitic  Group. 

Shoskonean.  A  group  of  North  American 
Indian  tril)es,  all  belonging  to  the  Shoshone  or 
Snake  family,  formerly  occupying  Idaho,  Utah, 
and  Wyoming,  with  neighbouring  districts.  They 
include  the  Shoshones  or  Snakes,  Bannocks, 
Comanches,  Utahs,  and  Mokis.  With  the  excep- 
tion of  the  warlike  Comanches,  they  are  a  peace- 
ful race,  who  have  received  the  white  invaders 
with  friendship. 

Shulis.     See  Nilitic  Group. 

Siamese.  Natives  of  Siam,  belonging  to  the 
Indo-Chinese  stock  of  the  Southern  Mongolic 
family.  They  are  closely  related  to  the  Shans 
{q.v.).  They  are  of  medium  height,  olive  com- 
plexion, with  slightly  flattened  noses,  promi  ent 
lips,  and  black  hair.  They  are  a  peaceful  and 
indolent  race,  who  have  recently  shown  promise 
of  assimilating  Western  civilisation.  Their  blood 
is  largely  mixed  with  Chinese  and  Malay.  Siam 
is  still  independent,  forming  a  buffer  state 
between  British  and  French  possessions. 

Siberian.  A  stock  of  the  Northern  Mongolic 
family,  including  the  Chukchi,  Koryak,  Kamcha- 
dale,  Gilyak,  and  Yukaghir  tribes  (q.v.). 

Sicani,  Siculi.     See  Sicilians. 

Sicilians.  The  primitive  inhabitants  of  Sicily 
were  the  Sicani,  probably  a  Hamitic  race  allied 
to  the  Ligurians  (q.v. ).  They  were  followed  by  the 
Siculi,  an  Aryan  race  of  Italic  stock,  who  crossed 
from  Italy  about  1000  b.c.  They  were  civilised 
and  modified  by  Phoenician,  and  especially  Greek 
settlers,  with  later  Norman  and  Saracen  influ- 
ences. Of  all  these  elements  the  modem 
Sicilians  are  compounded.  They  are  a  hand- 
some, industrious,  and  amiable  race,  but  turbu- 
lent, lawless,  given  to  blood-feuds  and  brigandage. 

Sienereks.     See  Nigerian  Group. 

Sikhs.  A  powerful  and  warlike  race  of 
Northern  India,  united  by  a  common  religious 
faith,  dating  from  the  eighteenth  century,  and 
mainly  of  Jat  (q.v.)  descent.  Under  Kanjit  Singh, 
at  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century',  they 
reared  a  formidable  military  power  in  the  Punjab, 
which  was  conquered  by  the  British  in  1846-1849. 
The  Sikhs  contribute  many  of  the  best  and 
most  trustworthy  troops  to  the  Indian  Army. 

Silurians.  A  dark,  round-skulled,  short  race 
who  inhabited  South  Wales  and  the  neighbouring 
districts  of  England  in  Roman  times.  They 
were  probably  of  Iberian  stock,  related  to  the 
ancient  Picts  and  modem  Basques. 

Sindis.  Natives  of  Sind  in  North-West  India, 
of  Hindu  descent. 

Singphos.  A  wild,  daring  hill-tribe  of  Tibetan 
stock  bordering  on  the  Assam  valley,  formerly 

344 


given  to  raiding,  but  now  peaceful  agriculturists. 
The  Chins  of  the  Arakan  uplands  are  probably 
an  identical  race  ;  they  are  still  predatory. 

Sinhalese.     See  Dra vidians. 

Siouan.  A  numerous  and  formerly  powerful 
group  of  North  American  Indians,  inhabiting  the 
western  prairies  between  the  Mississippi  and  the 
Rocky  Mountains.  Their  chief  tribe  was  the 
Sioux  or  Dakotas,  warriors  of  fine  physique, 
courage,  and  military  skill,  who  long  maintained 
a  successful  resistance  against  the  white  settlers. 
Other  allied  tribes  were  the  Assinaboins,  Omahas, 
Poncas,  Kaws,  Osages,  Quapaws,  lowas,  Otoes, 
Missouris,  Winnebagos,  Mandans,  Minnetarees, 
Absarakas  or  Crows,  Tutelos,  and  Catawbas. 

Sioux,  or  Dakotas.     See  Siouan. 

Siryanians.  A  tribe  of  Ugrian  Finns,  dwelling 
on  both  sides  of  the  Northern  Urals,  resembling 
the  Samoyedes  (q.v. ),  except  in  their  white  colour 
and  fair  hair,  probably  due  to  a  mixture  of 
Slavonic  blood.     See  Finno-Ugrian. 

Slavonic  Races,  Slavs  or  Slavonians.  A  main 
stock  of  the  Aryan  family,  occupying  the  greater 
part  of  Eastern  Europe,  and  formerly  extending 
as  far  west  as  the  Elbe.  Many  ethnologists  con- 
sider them  to  be  the  primitive  Aryan  stock. 
They  are  a  peaceful  and  industrious  agricultural 
and  pastoral  race,  broad-skulled,  with  fair  hair 
and  blue  eyes  ;  though  the  primitive  type  has 
been  much  modified  by  intermixture  of  blood, 
especially  with  Mongolic  races,  who  have  im- 
printed a  Tartar  character  on  many  Slavonic 
physiognomies.  The  Slavs  are  divided  into 
Eastern  (Russians  and  Ruthenians),  Western 
(Czechs  and  Slovaks,  Poles  and  Wends  or  Sorbs), 
and  Southern  (Bulgarians,  Servians,  and  Croats, 
Dalmatians,  Slovenians,  and  Montenegrins).  See 
under  these  heads. 

Slovaks.     See  Czechs. 

Slovenians.  A  branch  of  Southern  Slavonic 
stock,  inhabiting  Styria,  Carinthia,  and  adjoining 
districts.  ' 

Solimas.     See  Temne  Group. 

Somalis.  An  Eastern  Hamitic  race  of  Somali- 
land  in  North-East  Africa.  They  are  a  pastoral 
people,  of  good  physique,  handsome  features, 
and  light-brown  colour,  warlike  and  independent. 
The  original  Hamitic  stock— closely  akin  to  that 
of  the  Gallas  (q.v.) — is  modified  by  Semitic  and 
Negro  blood.  They  make  excellent  soldiers  and 
servants. 

Sonrhays.  A  Negro  race  of  the  Middle  Niger, 
in  whom  the  Sudanese  stock  is  modified  by  Arab 
and  Berber  elements. 

Sorbs.     See  Wends. 

Soyots.  A  tribe  of  Ugrian  Finns,  mixed  with 
Tartar  blood,  in  the  Sayan  Mountains  of  South 
Siberia.     See  Finno-Ugrian. 

Spaniards,  or  Spanish.  The  earliest  known 
race  of  Spain  was  the  Hamitic  Iberians  (q.v.),  now 
represented  by  the  Basques.  They  were  modified 
by  Celtic  invasions,  which  gave  birth  to  the 
Celt-Iberian  races  of  Central  and  Western  Spain, 
who  struggled  so  long  against  the  Roman  arms, 
by  which  they  were  finally  subjugated  and  further 
modified.  In  the  fifth  century  the  Vandals  and 
Visigoths  (q.v.)  invaded  Spain,  and  founded  a 
Gothic  monarchy,  which  fell  before  the  Saracens 
in  711.  The  Visigothic  refugees  in  the  northern 
mountains  gradually  recovered  the  country,  and 
the  kingdoms  of  Leon,  Navarre,  Castile,  and 
Aragon  were  ultimately  united  into  a  single 
state.     The  modern  Spaniards  are  thus  of  mixed 


AN    ALPHABET    OF    THE    WORLD'S    RACES 


race,  in  which  the  Iberian  and  Visigothic  are  the 
predominant  elements.  They  are  haughty,  brave, 
and  warUke,  by  which  qualities  they  once  owned 
the  greatest  power  in  Europe.  But  they  are 
turbulent  and  lacking  in  political  skill,  so  that 
Spain  has  decayed.  There  are  now  signs  of  a 
return  to  prosperity. 

Spanish  Americans.  White  natives  of  Central 
and  South  American  States,  except  Brazil. 

Spartans.  Natives  of  Sparta,  the  greatest 
state  of  ancient  Greece  after  Athens,  of  Dorian 
stock,  eminently  warlike  and  patriotic,  but 
wanting  in  art  or  literature. 

Sudanese.  Full-blooded  Negroes  inhabiting  the 
Western,  Central,  and  Eastern  or  Egyptian 
Sudan — i.e.,  most  of  Africa  north  of  the  Victoria 
Nyanza  They  are  black  in  colour,  with  woolly 
hair,  projecting  jaws,  long  skulls,  broad,  flat 
feet  and  projecting  heels,  and  form  one  of  the 
main  divisions  of  Ethiopic  Man.  They  are  less 
intelligent  and  susceptible  of  civilisation  than 
the  Bantus  [q.v.),  in  whom  the  Negro  blood  is 
modified  by  Hamitic  or  Semitic  admixtures. 
They  are  mostly  of  strong  physique,  warlike  and 
predatory,  fond  of  music  and  bright  colours,  with 
the  most  elementary  notions  of  art  and  religion. 
They  may  be  divided  for  convenience  into  several 
racial  groups  [q.v.),  such  as  Wolof,  Felup,  Tou- 
couleur,  Mandingan,  Temne,  Nigerian,  Nilotic, 
Liberian,  Lake  Chad,  Wadai,  Welle,  Nuba,  and 
Nilotic,  besides  the  Tshi,  Ga,  Ewe,  and  Yoruba 
peoples  of  the  Guinea  district. 
Suevi.     See  Swabians. 

Sundanese.     Natives  of  the  Sunda  Islands,  of 
Malayan  stock,  closely  allied  to  Javanese  (q.v.). 
Susus.     See  Mandingan.         , 
Sutughils.     See  Maya-Quiche. 
Swabians.     Natives    of     Swabia,     an    ancient 
duchy  occupying  the  south-western  part  of  the 
modem  German   Empire  ;    descended   from   the 
ancient  Suevi,   with   whom   the  Alemanni  (q.v.) 
were  amalgamated.     A  strong,  large-boned,  and 
good-humoured  race  of  High  German  stock.     The 
Alsatians  are  closely  allied  to  them. 

Swahilis.  Natives  of  Zanzibar  and  the  adjoin- 
ing mainland,  Bantu  Negroes,  with  a  strong 
infusion  of  Arab  blood,  which  has  made  them 
superior  in  intelligence  and  enterprise  to  the 
average  negro.  They  play  a  large  part  in  the 
commerce  of  East  Africa,  and  their  language— 
Ki-Swahili — is  the  principal  medium  of  com- 
munication throughout  the  part  of  Africa  between 
the  Equator  and  the  Zambesi. 

Swazis.  Natives  of  Swaziland,  a  native  state 
on  the  south-east  of  the  Transvaal.  A  cross 
between  Zulus  and  other  Kafirs,  they  are  indus- 
trious and  warlike. 

Swedes.  Natives  of  Sweden,  a  branch  of  the 
Scandinavian  stock.  They  seem  to  have  been 
originally  a  Teutonic  race,  who  entered  Northern 
Sweden  about  3,000  years  ago,  and  drove  out 
the  aboriginal  Lapps  and  Finns.  The  inhabitants 
of  Southern  Sweden  were  called  Goths,  and  may 
have  been  the  ancestors  of  the  Teutonic  Goths. 
In  time  they  amalgamated  with  the  Swedes, 
and  formed  one  nation,  which  has  been  an  inde- 
pendent kingdom  through  most  of  the  Christian 
era.  The  Swedes  are  warlike,  and  successful  in 
commerce  and  industry  ;  they  make  good  sailors, 
and  possess  a  considerable  literature. 

Swiss,  or  Switzers.  The  prehistoric  inhabitants 
of  Switzerland  were  the  unknown  builders  of 
the  lake  dwellings.     At  the  dawn  of  history,  in 


Cajsar's  time,  the  country  was  largely  occupied 
by  a  Celtic  race,  the  Helvctii.  Later,  Switzerland 
was  invaded  by  Teutonic  races  of  High  German 
stock,  Alemanni,  Burgundians,  etc.  The  modem 
Swiss  are  mostly  descended  from  these  races  ; 
there  is  also  a  considerable  mixture  of  French, 
Italic  and  Romansch  elements.  The  Swiss  have 
always  been  a  warlike  race,  who  preserved  the 
independence  of  their  mountainous  country 
through  all  ages,  and  in  earlier  times  fumished 
excellent  mercenary  soldiers  to  foreign  armies. 
They  are  now  very  industrious  and  successful  in 
many  arts  and  crafts,  such  as  watchmaking, 
wood-carving,  hotel-keeping,  etc.  They  are  a 
simple  and  handsome  race,  possessing  in  full 
measures  the  virtues  of  the  mountaineer. 

Syrians.  The  ancient  Syrians  were  a  branch 
of  the  Aramaean  stock  of  the  Semitic  family, 
and  the  modem  Syrians  are  their  descendants, 
with  some  Arab  and  Turkish  elements  added. 
They  are  tall,  with  white  skins  and  dark  com- 
plexions, black  eyes  and  hair,  often  very  hand- 
some, and  approaching  the  Jewish  type.  They 
are  not  warlike,  but  succeed  in  commerce. 
Tacullis.  See  Athabascan. 
Tahitians.  Natives  of  Tahiti,  of  Polynesiaii 
stock ;  pleasure-loving  and  po'ite,  but  immoral 
and  untrustworthy  ;  now  civilised  but  formerly 
noted  for  their  cruelty. 

Taipings.     The   Chinese  rebels  who  attacked 
the  dynasty  from  1850  to  1864. 
Tajiks.     See  Persians. 

Talaings.  An  Indo-Chinese  race  who  preceded 
the  Burmese  in  the  Irawadi  Delta,  and  founded 
a  state  of  which  Pegu  was  the  capital.  They  were 
subjugated  by  Burmese  in  the  eighteenth  century. 
Talamancas.  Wild  hunting  Indians,  perfectly 
uncivilised,  who  occupy  the  forest-covered 
Atlantic  slopes  of  Costa  Rica. 

Tamils.      Natives    of    Northem    Ceylon    and 
the  Indian  Carnatic.     See  Dr.widas. 
Taos.     See  Pueblo  Indians. 
Tangots.       Nomadic    Mongols     of    Northern 
Tibet.     See  Sharras. 

Tarahumaras.     See  Opata-Pima. 
Tarascans.      A    group    of    Indian    tribes    in- 
habiting the  province  of  Michoaca  m  Mexico. 

Tartars  or  Tatars.  The  modern  Tartars  are 
inhabitants  of  the  Russian  Empire,  belonging  to 
the  Turki  stock  of  the  Northern  Mongolic  family. 
They  are  divided  into  various  geographical 
subdivisions,  such  as  the  Kazan,  Astrakhan, 
Crimean  (or  Krim)  Caucasian  and  Siberian 
Tartars.  The  name  has  no  definite  ethnical 
significance.  The  Tatars— a  Manchu  word 
meaning  "  archers  "  or  "  nomads  "—were  Mongol 
tribes  who  were  first  so  named  in  the  ninth 
century.  They  formed  a  large  part  of  the  hordes 
of  Genghiz  Khan  [see  Mongols]  and  stood  in 
the  van  of  the  mediaeval  Mongol  incursions  into 
Europe,  whence  they  attracted  an  attention  out 
of  proportion  to  their  importance.  Europeans 
called  them  Tartars,  confusing  the  name  Tartar 
with  the  Greek  Tartarus  or  Hell.  See  Turki. 
Tasmanians.  The  extinct  aborigines  of  Tas- 
mania, akin  to  the  Australians  (q.v.),  but  of  a 
still  lower  Oceanic  Negro  type.  They  held  a 
place  at  the  very  bottom  of  humanity,  alike  in 
physique,  intelligence  and  culture,  being  still  in 
the  early  Stone  Age  ;  savage,  untamable,  and 
degraded. 

Tatars.     See  Tartars. 

345 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Tats.     See  Persians. 

T&vastians.  A  branch  of  the  Baltic  Finns, 
with  thick-set  figures,  small  blue  eyes,  light  hair, 
and  white  skins,  probably  the  consequence  of  an 
admixture  of  German  blood  with  the  original  Fin- 
nish stock.     They  inhabit  central  Finland. 

Tazis.     See  Tunguses. 

Teguas.     See  Pueblo  Indians. 

Tehuelches.  Another  name  for  the  gigantic 
PataL;onians  (q.v.)  of  South  America. 

Telugus.     See  Dravidians. 

Tembus,  Amatembu,  or  Tambukies.  A  group 
of  Kafir  (q.v.)  tribes  in  Tembuland,  to  the  north 
of  the  Kei  River  in  Cape  Colony.  Formerly 
warlike  and  troublesome,  now  settled  to  agri- 
culture and  subjected  to  British  rule. 

Temnc  Group.  A  group  of  Sudanese  Negro 
tribes,  inhabiting  the  Sierra  Leone  district  of 
West  Africa,  including  the  Temnes  or  Timnis, 
Kissis,  Sherbros,  Gallinas,  Bulloms,  Solimas, 
Limbas,  and  Mendis. 

Tepeguanas.     See  Opata-Pima. 

Teutons.  An  important  stock  of  the  Aryan 
family,  inhabiting  England  and  the  Scottish 
Lowlands,  with  the  United  States  and  British 
Empire,  Germany,  Holland,  and  parts  of  Austria 
and  Switzerland,  Denmark,  Norway,  and  Sweden. 
The  Teutonic  races  are  divided  into  Low  German 
and  High  German  divisions,  to  which  some  add, 
but  others  do  not,  Scandinavians. 

Thiinkits.  A  race  of  North  American  Indians 
inhabiting  the  Pacific  coast  from  Mount  St.  Elias 
to  the  Simpson  River,  and  the  adjacent  islands. 
They  live  chiefly  by  fishing  and  hunting. 

Thos.  An  Indo-Chinese  race  of  Lao  descent 
[see  Shans],  in  the  north  of  Tongkmg 

Thracians.  The  ancient  inhabitants  of  Thrace, 
on  the  west  of  the  Black  Sea.  Their  origin  is 
dubious,  but  they  are  generally  assumed  to 
have  belonged  to  the  Aryan  family,  and  been 
related  to  the  Teutons  and  the  Greeks.  They 
were  wild  hill  tribes,  who  acquired  in  later  days 
a  certain  amount  of  Roman  culture  and  spoke 
the  Latin  language.  There  is  .some  probability 
that  they  were  the  ancestors  of  the  Vlachs  or 
Roumanians  (q.v.). 

Thuringians.  A  High  German  tribe  inhabit- 
ing Thuringia  in  the  fifth  century,  probably  a 
branch  of  the  Suevi  (q.v.).  Now  merged  into 
the  modern  Saxons. 

Tibetans,  or  Bod-Pa.  Natives  of  Tibet,  form- 
ing the  Tibetan  stock  of  the  Southern  Mongolic 
family,  and  allied  to  the  minor  races  of  Lepchas, 
Baitis,  Ladakhis,  etc.  {q.v.).  The  Tibetans  are  akin 
to  the  Burmese,  with  Mongolic  features,  broad- 
shouldered  and  muscular.  They  are  a  secluded  and 
archaic  race,  with  many  curious  customs,  such  as 
polyandry.  Their  religion  is  full  of  elaborate  cere- 
monials, and  the  land  abounds  in  monasteries. 

Tibbus.  A  race  inhabiting  the  oases  of  the 
Sahara,  intermediate  between  Berbers  and 
Negroes  ;  perhaps  descended  from  the  ancient 
Garamantes  (q.v.). 

Timnis.    See  Temne  Group. 

Tinne,  or  Tinney.     See  Athabascan. 

Tobas.  .'\  warlike  and  predatory  race  of 
South  American  Indians  on  the  Rio  Vermejo  in 
Bolivia. 

Tocantins.     See  Tupi-Guarani. 

Todas.  An  isolated  group  of  Caucasic  race 
inhabiting    the    Nilgiri    Hills,   and   distinguished 


from  the  neighbouring  Dravidian  tribes  by  their 
fine  physique  and  regular  features  of  Caucasic 
type  ;    a  dying  race. 

Togos.     See  Ewe. 

Toltecs.  The  oldest  of  Nahuan  (q.v.)  races, 
who  established  a  semi-civilised  State  in  Mexico 
before  the  Aztecs. 

Tongans.     See     Polynesians. 

Tongas,  or  Amatonga.  A  Kafir  race  of  peaceful 
agriculturists,  occupying  Tongaland,  to  the  north 
of  Zulu  land. 

Tonkinese.  A  branch  of  the  Annamese  (^.w.), 
skilled  in  agriculture  and  dyke-building. 

Toucouleurs.  Sudanese  Negroes  of  Sene- 
gambia,  probably  crossed  .with  Hamitic  blood  ; 
formerly  dominant  in  the  Western  Sudan. 

Tshi  Group.  A  group  of  Sudanese  Negro  tribes 
of  the  Guinea  Coast,  including  the  warlike 
Ashantis,  Fantis  and  Adansis. 

Tuaregs.  The  predatory  Berber  {q.v.)  Nomads 
of  the  Sahara. 

Tudas.     See   Dravidians. 

Tumalis.     See  Nuba  Group. 

Tunguses.  A  branch  of  the  Mongol  stock  of 
the  Northern  Mongolic  family,  who  lead  a  nomad 
existence  in  the  mountains  of  East  Siberia  and 
the  Amur  region.  They  are  of  Mongolic  physical 
type,  with  square  skalls,  low  stature,  and  wiry, 
well-knit  figures.  They  are  distinguished  by 
fine  moral  qualities,  a  fearless  race  of  hunters, 
industrious,  trustworthy,  and  self-reliant.  Their 
main  tribes  are  the  Lamuts,  or  "  sea  people," 
Orochs,  Chapogirs,  Golds,  and  Tazis.  The 
modern  Tunguses  probably  represent  the  primi- 
tive stock  of  the  Manchus  (q.v.). 

Tupi-Guarani.  A  wide-spread  family  of  South 
American  Indians,  in  Brazil,  including  numerous 
distinct  tribes,  of  which  the  Chiriguanas  of 
Bolivia,  Caribunas  of  the  Rio  Negro,  Paraguay 
Indians,  Tupinambas  of  the  Para  coast,  Mun- 
drucus  of  the  Tapajos,  Omaguas,  Goajiris  and 
Tocantins,  are  the  most  important.  They  are 
copper-coloured,  thick-set  and  muscular,  with 
broad  features,  black  hair  and  sometimes 
obliquely  set  eyes.  They  are  of  apathetic 
nature,  and  are  slow  to  acquire  civilisation. 

Tupinambas.     See  Tupi-Guarani. 

Turanian.  An  ethnological  term,  now  aban- 
doned, roughly  corresponding  to  the  Northern 
Mongolic  or  LVal-Altaic  family. 

Turguts.     See   Kalmuks. 

Turkanas.  An  African  Hamitic  race,  allied 
to  the  Masais  {q.v.),  and  dwelling  between  Lake 
Rudolf  and  the  Nile. 

Turki,  or  Turks.  An  important  and  wide- 
spread stock  oi  the  Northern  Mongolic  family, 
dwelling  in  Central  Asia,  Asia  Minor,  and  in 
European  Turkey.  The  primitive  Turki  s<:ock 
— the  Chinese  Tu-kiu  and  ancient  Turca; — 
seem  to  have  inhabited  the  Altai  region  as 
early  as  the  second  century  B.C.  Thence  they 
spread  far  and  wide,  and  founded  many  powerful 
and  predatory,  but  unstable  empires.  The 
Huns  {q.v.)  who  followed  Attila  were  largely  of 
Turki  stock.  Their  chief  modem  race  is  that 
of  the  Ottoman  Turks  [see  Turks],  who  raised 
their  empire  on  the  ruins  of  Constantinople  in 
1453.  Other  Turki  races  are  the  Yakuts, 
Usbegs,  Naimans  Andijanis,  Nogais,  Tartars, 
Bashkirs,  Kizil-Bashis,  Anatolian  Turks,  etc. 
They  are  clo.sely  allied  to  the  Kirghiz,  Kipchaks, 


AN    ALPHABET    OF    THE    WORLD'S    RACES 


Kara-Kalpaks  and  Turkomans  (q.v.).  The  Turki 
physical  type,  of  Mongol  origin,  has  been  modilied 
by   intermixture  with   Caucasic   races. 

Turks,  Osmanlis,  or  Ottoman  Turks.  The 
dominant  inhabitants  of  the  Turkish  Empire 
in  Europe  and  Asia  Minor,  the  most  powerful 
of  Turki  races.  They  trace  their  descent  from 
the  Seljuks,  a  confederacy  of  Turki  tribes  who 
were  settled  on  the  Jaxartes  in  the  eleventh 
century,  and  there  adopted  Islam.  They 
conquered  Persia  and  established  kingdoms  in 
Syria — the  great  Saladin  was  one  of  their 
princes — and  Asia  Minor,  or  Anatolia.  The 
true  Ottoman  Turks  entered  the  service  of  the 
Seljuk  rulers  in  the  thirteenth  century,  being 
driven  from  Kharasan  by  the  advance  of  the 
Mongol  hordes,  and  under  Othman  and  his 
successors  they  became  the  dominant  Turk 
race.  They  reared  a  great  military  power,  and 
soon  invaded  Europe,  where  they  destroyed 
the  Eastern  Empire  in  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth 
century  and  founded  the  still  existing  Turkish 
Empire.  The  Ottoman  Turks  are  proud,  ignor- 
ant and  fanatical,  but  honourable  and  upright. 
They  make  admirable  soldiers,  when  properly 
led,  but  arc  surpas  ed  in  the  arts  of  peace  by  their 
subject  races,  Greeks,  Bulgarians,  Jews,  etc. 

Turkom;ins.     A    race    of   Turki    nomads    who 
inhabit    the    steppes    east    of   the    Caspian    and 
south  of    the  Oxus.      They  include  such  tribes 
as    the    Chaudors,    Tekkes    (Akhal    and    Merv), 
Salors,    Yomuds,    Goklen,   and    Ali-Elis.      They 
were    formerly    noted    for    their    predatory    and 
man-stealing    habits,    but    under    Russian    rule 
have  been  forced  to  live  a  more  peaceful  life,  m 
Tusayas.     See   Pueblo   Indians. 
Tuscaroras.     North  American   Indians.      See 
Iroquoian. 
Tushis.     See    Chechenzes. 
Tushilange.     A  branch  of  the  Baluba  (q.v.). 
Tutclos.     See   Siouan. 

Tyrolcse.  Natives  of  the  Tyrol,  the  ancient 
Rhaetia,  a  mountainous  district  now  belonging 
to  the  Austrian  Empire.  They  are  of  High 
German  Teutonic  stock,  and  are  noted  for 
their  patriotism  and  bravery,  illustrated  by  their 
resistance  under  Hofer  to  the  arms  of  Napoleon. 
They  are  industrious  and  thrifty,  but  backward 
in  education,  and  devout  Catholics. 

Tyrrhenes.  An  ancient  pre-Hellenic  race  of 
Greece,  found  in  Thrace  and  Etruria,  who  prob- 
ably belonged  to  the  Pelasgian  stock  of  the  Hamitic 
family,  giving  birth  to  the  Etruscans  (q.v.).. 

Ugrian.  A  branch  of  the  Finno-Ugrian 
stock  (q.v.)  including  the  Samoyedes,  Voguls, 
Ostyaks,  Soyots  and  Siryanians  of  Siberia,  the 
Permian  Finns  of  Russia,  and  the  Magyars  of 
Hungary.  See  under  these  heads. 
Umbquas.  See  Athabascan. 
Umbrians.  An  ancient  Italic  race,  perhaps 
allied  to  the  Etruscans  (q.v.)  or  the  Samnites, 
afterwards  subjugated  by  Rome. 

Ural-Altaic.  A  term  applied  to  the  Northern 
Mongolic  family  of  races,  corresponding  nearly 
to  the  older  Turanian.  It  includes  the  Mongol, 
Turki,  Finno-Ugrian,  Siberian,  and  Koreo- 
Japanese  stocks. 

Uruts.     See  Sharras. 
Utahs.     See   Shoshonean. 
Uzbegs.  Nomadic  Turki  race  of  the  Oxus  Basin. 
Vaalpens.       A   Negrito  race  of  the    Kalahari 
Desert,  probably  a  half-breed  between  Bechuanas 


and  Bushmen,  formerly  the  serfs  of  the  dominant 
Bantu  races,  but  now  freed  under  British 
rule. 

Vandals.  A  Teutonic  race,  settled  at  the 
dawn  of  the  Christian  era  in  North-east  Germany 
between  the  Oder  and  the  Vistula.  Like  the 
Goths,  whom  they  physically  resembled,  they 
were  a  warlike  and  roving  race.  Early  in  the 
fifth  century  they  invaded  Gaul  and  formed  a 
settlement  in  Spain,  where  Andalusia  (anciently 
Vandalitia)  preserves  their  name.  Later,  under 
the  fierce  Genseric,  they  crossed  to  Africa  and 
over-ran  Mauretania,  where  they  established 
a  short-lived  piratical  Empire.  In  534  it  was 
destroyed  by  a  Bvzantine  army  under  Belisarius, 
and  the  Vandals  thereafter  disappeared  as  a 
separate  race.  Their  name  has  become  a  by- 
word on  account  of  their  turn  for  devastation. 
Vaudois.  See  Waldenses. 
Veddahs.  A  primitive  hunting  people  of 
Ceylon,  who  are  sometimes  classed  as  Dravidian, 
but  more  probably  represent  the  still  older 
(Negrito  ?)  aborigines  of  the  island.  They  are 
dwarfish,  of  dark  complexion,  with  features 
intermediate  between  the  Hindu  and  Papuan 
types.  They  rank  among  the  ruclest  and  least 
civilised  of  races,  being  equally  unable  to  laugh, 
count,  or  cook.     They  are  dying  out. 

Vcis,  or  Vey.  A  Sudanese  Negro  race,  of 
Mandingan  stock,  on  the  West  Coast  of  Africa, 
who  are  said  to  be  the  only  Negro  race  who 
have  invented  an  alphabet. 

Venezuelans.    White  natives  of  Venezuela,  of 
Spanish  descent.     Most  of  them  are  crossed  with 
Indian  blood. 
Vikings.     See  Norsemen. 
Visigoths.     See  Goths. 

Voguls.  A  nomadic  Finno-Ugrian  race  who 
inhabit  both  slopes  of  the  Urals.  They  closely 
resemble  the  Ostyaks  and  Samoyedes  (q.v.).  m 
Vuaregga,  Vuarua,  Vuarunga,  Vuavinza. 
Bantu  Negro  tribes  inhabiting  the  Congo  basin 
and  the  Tanganyika  district. 

Wachaga.  A  predatory  Bantu  race  on  the 
southern  slopes  of  Kilimanjaro. 

Wadai  Group.  A  group  of  Sudanese  Negro 
tribes  inhabiting  Wadai  and  East  Darfur, 
including  Birkits,  Massalits,  Korungas,  Mabas 
(mixed  with  Hamitic  blood),  and  other  tribes. 
They  are  mainly  of  pastoral  habit. 

Waganda.  A  Bantu  Negro  race  who  founded 
the  kingdom  of  Uganda  and  attained  a  remark- 
able degree  of  civilisation  before  the  arrival  of 
white  men.  They  are  very  intelligent,  and  their 
skill  in  the  industrial  arts  has  caused  them  to  be 
called  the  Japanese  of  Africa.  They  are  also 
warlike,  and  formerly  indulged  in  frequent 
plundering  and  slave  hunting  raids  among  the 
surrountling  races. 

Wagogo.     A    Bantu    Negro   race   of   German 
East  Africa. 
Wahehe.     See  Wasagara. 

Wa-Huma.  A  conquering  pastoral  race,  of 
Eastern  Hamitic  stock,  who  migrated  from 
Gallaland  and  penetrated  as  far  south  as  Unyam- 
wezi,  founding  various  kingdoms  on  the  way. 
They  are  of  Hamitic  features,  fair  complexion, 
and  tall  stature  ;  very  warlike.  The  ruhng 
classes  of  Uganda  and  Unyoro  are  of  Wa-Huma 
origin.  The  Wa-Huma  are  a  branch  of  the 
Gallas  (q.v.).  Among  their  tribes  are  the 
Wajiji,  Warundi,  Waruanda,  etc. 

347 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


W&jiji.     Sec  Wa-Huma. 

Waldenses,  or  V&udois.  A  heretical  sect  which 
originated  in  the  South  of  France  in  the  twelfth 
century,  and  was  formed  into  a  separate  race  by 
persecution  ;  of  French,  Swiss,  and  Italian 
elements.     They  are  now  settled  in  Savoy. 

Walloons.  Natives  of  South-eastern  Belgium, 
of  mixed  Celtic  and  Romanic  stock,  probably 
descended  from  the  ancient  Belgae  (q.v.).  They 
are  tall,  bony,  and  of  strong  physique,  and  are 
very  successful  in  industry,  as  shown  in  the 
great  manufacturing  town  of  Liege. 

Wanyamwezi.  A  warlike  Bantu  race  of 
German  East  Africa,  who  formerly  composed 
a  powerful  predatory  state. 

Wanyoro.  Natives  of  Unyoro,  in  British  East 
Africa,  of  Bantu  race,  skilled  in  industrial  arts, 
and  formerly  allied  with  Arab  slave-traders. 

Wapisianas.     See  Arawaks. 

Wapokomo.  The  chief  Bantu  race  of  the  Tana 
basin,  skilled  boatmen  and  hunters,  formerly 
under  Masai  domination,  now  acquiring  civilisa- 
tion under  British  rule. 

Warraus.  An  aboriginal  Indian  race  of 
British  Guiana. 

Warua.  A  powerful,  warlike,  and  barbarous 
Bantu  race  of  the  Lualaba  district  in  the  Congo 
Free  State,  forming  a  powerful  native  state, 
and  skilled  in  industry  and  rude  art. 

War«anda,  Warundi.     See  Wa-Huma. 

Wasagara.  A  warlike  and  widespread  Bantu 
people  of  German  East  Africa  ;  fierce  moun- 
taineers, much  given  to  marauding.  The 
Wahehe,  who  claim  Zulu  affinities,  are  one  of 
their  tribes. 

Waswahili.     See  Swahilis. 

Wataveita.  A  mild  and  settled  agricultural 
Bantu  race  inhabiting  the  slopes  of  Kilimanjaro 
in  German  East  Africa. 

Welle  Group.  A  group  of  Sudanese  Negro 
races  inhabiting  the  region  of  the  Upper  Welle 
River  in  Central  Africa,  including  the  cannibal 
Niam-Niam,  or  Azandeh,  the  Mangbattu,  Nsak- 
kara,  Amadi,  .^babua,  and  other  tribes. 

Welsh,  or  Cymry.  The  chief  surviving  branch 
of  the  Brythonic  or  P  Celts,  inhabiting  Wales, 
where  they  preserve  their  ancient  language  and 
customs.  They  probably  represent  the  ancient 
Britons  who  inhabited  England  at  the  time  of 
the  Anglo-Saxon  inmiigrations.  "  An  old  and 
haughty  nation,  proud  in  arms." 

Wends.  A  stock  of  the  Western  Slavonic 
family,  settled  in  the  north  and  east  of  Germany 
in  the  sixth  century.  They  were  gradu-ally 
absorbed  by  the  Teutonic  Germans.  A  remnant 
of  the  Wendish  race,  preserving  their  ancient 
language  and  customs,  survives  in  Lusatia,  on 
the  borders  of  Saxony  and  Prussia,  where  they 
are  niso  known  as  Sorbs. 

Winnebagos.     See   Siou.an. 

Wochuas.     See  Pygmies. 

Wolofs.  Sudanese  Negroes,  dwelling  between 
Lower  Sen*  gal  and  Gambia  ;  very  black,  but  with 
regular  features,  indicating  a  trace  of  Hamitic 
blotxl.     Their  chief  branch  is  that  of  the  jolofs. 

Wulwas.     Sec  Lencan. 

Xanthochroi.  A  suggested  division  of 
Caucasic  Man,  opposed  to  the  Melanochroi,  cha- 
racterised by  fair  hair,  blue  eyes,  and  rosy 
complexion.  It  wouUi  thus  include  the  Teutonic, 
Scandinavian,  and  Slavonic  stocks  oi  the  Aryan 
family. 


Xosas,  or  Amaxosa.  The  southern  stock  of 
the  Kafir  race  {q.v.),  allied  to  the  Zulus,  or 
northern  stock.  They  are  eminently  warlike, 
and  have  an  interesting  system  of  social  organ- 
isation. They  are  of  Bantu  origin,  immigrants 
from  the  north,  who  have  dispossessed  the 
Hottentot  or  Bushman  aborigines.  They  are 
tall,  well-built,  and  muscular,  with  Negro  features 
and  complexion,  and  woolly  hair.  They  are 
semi-nomadic  cattle-breeders  and  hunters,  but 
many  have  taken  to  the  settled  pursuits  of 
agriculture.  They  were  long  at  war  with  the 
British  and  Boer  settlers,  but  are  now  a  peaceful 
and  contented  people  under  British  nde. 

Yakuts.  A  Mongolic  race  of  Turki  stock, 
inhabiting  the  province  of  Yakutsk  in  East 
Siberia.  They  are  of  middle  height,  with  black 
hair,  flat  noses,  and  narrow  eyes.  They  are 
laborious  and  enterprising,  and  show  more 
aptitude  for  civilisation  than  the  Buriats  or 
Tunguses.  They  inhabit  log  "  yurtas  "  in  winter, 
but  camp  out  in  summer.  Cattle-breeding,  and 
to  a  less  degree  agriculture,  are  their  chief 
occupations. 

Yankees.  Natives  of  the  New  England  States. 
In  a  wider  sense,  the  northern  inhabitants  of  the 
United  States. 

Yaos.  Agricultural  aborigines  of  French 
Indo-China,  perhaps  allied  to  the  Chinese  proper. 

Yedinas.     See  Lake  Chad  Group. 

Yomuds.     See  Turkomans. 

Yorubas.  A  group  of  Sudanese  Negro  races 
inhabiting  the  eastern  half  of  the  Slave  Coast 
district,  and  united  by  a  common  Yoruba 
language,  though  much  broken  up  by  political 
feuds.  They  are  peacefully  disposed,  indus- 
trious, and  friendly  to  strangers.  Their  main 
pursuit  is  agriculture,  but  they  also  practise 
many  industries  ;  they  are  the  best  architects 
in  Africa.  Their  chief  tribes  are  those  of  Egba, 
Jebu,  Oworo,  Ondo,  Ife,  and  Oyo.  Abeokuta, 
the  Egba  capital,  owes  its  fame  to  the  success 
with  which  it  held  out  as  a  city  of  refuge  against 
the  slave-hunters  of  Dahomey  and  Ibadan. 

Yukaghirs.  A  nomadic  tribe  of  north-east 
Siberia,  probably  identical  with  the  Tunguses 
(q.v.). 

Yumas.     See  Opata-Pima. 

Yuruks.  A  nomadic  Turki  race  in  the  Konia 
vilayet  of  Turkey-in-Asia 

Yusufzais.     See  Afghans. 

Zambos.     See  Sambos. 

Zaparos.  South  American  Indians,  on  the 
Upper  Napo  in  Peru. 

Zapotecs.  Central  American  Indians  of  Oajaca 
in  Mexico. 

Zendals,  Zotzils.     See  Mava-Quiche. 

Zulus,  or  Amazulu.  A  very  warlike  Bantu 
race,  allied  to  the  Xosas  and  other  Kafir  tribes, 
whom  they  resemble  in  physique  and  organisa- 
tion. Originally  a  small  Kafir  clan,  the  ZuUis 
were  raised  to  eminence  at  the  beginning  of  the 
nineteenth  century  by  the  genius  of  Tchaka,  a 
kind  of  Negro  Napoleon,  who  established  a 
severe  military  despotism,  and  dominated  South 
Africa  from  the  Zambesi  to  Cape  Colony  by  the 
courage  and  military  skill  of  his  regiments. 
Tchaka's  descendants  ruled  Zululand  proper, 
and  waged  war  against  Kafirs,  Boers,  and 
English,  until  their  country  was  annexed  by 
Britain  in  1887.  The  Zulus  are  both  physically 
and  imntally  one  of  the  finest  of  .\frican  races. 

Zunis.     See  Pueblo  Indians. 


TYPES     OF     THE     CHIEF     LIVING     RACES     OF     MANKIND 


15.   Ladioiif   Islander 


16.  Hindu 


17.   Samang: 


18.  Negrito 


349 


TYPES     OF     THE     CHIEF     LIVING     RACES     OF     MANKIND 


^^U 
^ 


K. 


23.  Kalmuck 


24.   Kamchadale 


25.  Aleoutian 


32.   Kiitchin  Indian 


33.   Chili  Indian 


34.   Yucatan  Indian 


35.   Fuegian 


350 


GROUPED     ACCORDING     TO     PHYSIOLOGICAL    RELATIONSHIP 


36.  Jeba  Negro 


37.   Beja 


38.  Sahara  Negro 


42.  North  Australian  43.  West  Australian 


44.  South  Australian 


45.  Tasmanian 


46.  Tikopia  Islander 


<r^ 


47.    Maori 


48.  Samoan 


W    ' 


49.   Melaiiesian  (Vaiiikoro  Island)       50.   Melaiiesian  (Npw  Hebrides) 


SI.   Fijian 


351 


ETHNOLOGICAL  CHART  OF  THE  HUAAN  RACE 

This  Chart,  intended  for  reference  in  connection  with  the  Dictionary  of 
Races  beginning  on  page  311,  gives  a  view  of  the  various  main  divisions, 
famiUes,  and  stocks  into  which  the  human  race  is  divided  by  ethno- 
logists. It  is  impossible  to  give  a  complete  list  of  the  individual  races 
within  the  necessary  limits,  but  the  chief  typical  races  are  named  under  each 
stock  in  the  right-hand  column.    The  races  marked  with  an  asterisk  are  extinct 


ETHIOPIC     DIVISION 

iiily  Stuck 


\ Hottentot  Bushman 


Pygtny 


<Z 


g  (        Papuan 


Melanesian 


A  ustralian 


ill 


Negrito 


rWochua 
-!  Alvka 
vObongo 

/  New  Guinea 
\      natives 
(  Fijian 
I  Solomon 
(^      Islanders 
/'Australian 
\      aborigines 
l^Tasmanian* 

(hn 
-^Sa 
l^Ae 


'Aiitlamanese 
Sakai 
Veta 


MONGOLIC    DIVISION 


Family  Stock  Typical  races 

rSharra 

J  Kalinuk 

I  liuriat 

(,  I  un};us 

{Turks 
Tartars 
B.ashkirs 
Kirshiz 
Turkoman 
Samoyede 
Magyar 
Finno-Ugrian   \  Finn 

Hulgar 
Lapp 
Chukchi 
Kamchadale 

/.  ,    .  i  Korean 

horeo.Ja/>anese\^^^^^^^^^ 

Dravidian  {J)        Tamil 


Mongol 


Turki 


Sibe 


Tibetan 


Indo-Chinese 


Chinese 


Malaysian 

Malagasy 

P!iili/i/>ine 
portnosiin 


/"Tibetan 
I  lialti 

\  l.ushai 

/^Hurinese 
J  Siamese 

j  Hhil 

I  Annamese 

rChiiicse 
\  Punti 

l,Lolo 


/"Mala' 
\  Dvak 
Uava,, 


/  Visayan 
(  Ilocano 


AMERICAN     DIVISION 


Family 

Arctic 


Stock 
Eskimo 

A  thabascan 

Algongiiian 

Iroquoian 

Thiinkit 

Haida 

Chinook 


Shoshonean 


Muskhogean 

Natchez 

Kio7ua 

Saiish 

Pueblo 
/         Otomi 

Opata-Pima 
Cuaicuri 


Nahuan 


Maya-Quichi 

Lencan 

Rribri 

Talamanca 

y.afiotec 

Miztec 

Chorotcgan 

Inca 

Ayiiiara 

Chibcha 

Choco 

Za'^aro 

Jiziaro 

Mojo 

Chiquito 

Barr^ 

Charrua 

Chuncho 

Conibo 

Carib 

ArawcJt 

Warrau 
Botocudo 

Tupi-Guarani 

Payagua 
Matacoan 
J  06a 
Araucanian 

Puelche 

Patai;onian 
\  J'urj^ian 


Typical  races 
/  Eskimo 
\  Aleutian 

/  Apache 
\  Navajo 
I  Delaware 
<  Mohican 
VHlackfoot 
I  Huron 
J.  Mohawk 
\  Cherokee 
Thiinkit 
Haida 
Chinook 
/"Sioux 
-!  Dakota 
I^Omaha 

/Shoshone 
Utah 
I  Comanche 
(_l'awnee 
j  Choktaw 
\  Seminole 

Natchez* 

Kiowa 

Flathead 
(Zun'x 
\  Taos 

Otomi 

{Cora 
Tarahumara 
Guaicuri 
Tarascan 

TToltec 

\  Aztec 

I,  Mexican 

?Maya 

\  Quiche 

^  Huastec 

{Chontal 
(iuatusa 
Bribri 
Talamanca 
Zapotec 
M  iztec 
Chorotegan 

/  Quichua 
\  Chanca 

Aymara 

Chibcha 

Choco 

Zaparo 

Jivaro 

Mojo 

Chiijuito 

Barr6 

Charrua* 

Chuncho 

Conibo 

{Macusi 
Kucuyenne 
/  Maypuri 
\  Wapisiana 

Warrau 

I'otocudo 
(  Par.aguay 
I  Caribuna 
V_Tupinamba 

Payagua 

Matacoan 

Toba 

Araucanian 
f  Puelche 
\  ( laucho 

Pal.iucnian 

Kuruian 


CAUCASIC    DIVISION 


Family 


Stock 


(Eastern 


Typical  races 

(Egyptian 
Somali 
Galla 
Masai 
TNumidian     herber 

Iberian       j  ^?^1"^ 
lyesternl,.       .        ^P'"* 

j  Ligunan       Corsican 
lpela«-i=.n/ii'yce"aean* 


^Pelasgian  |  '^^ 


Assyrian 
Ara»i(ean 

Canaanite 

Arab 
Himyarite 

I        Hindu 
Iranian 
Hellenic 

Italic 


Keltic 


/"Goidelic 

or 
]<i  Kelts 
1  Hryt 
I 
^PK 


thonic 

or 

elts 


Slavonic 


Scandinavian 


r  Low 
German 


Teutonic 


High 
[German 


■j  (  Southern 

<]  Western 

%_  I  Eastern 

r  \   ^ 


Polynesian 


Chaldeean* 
/  Syrian 
1  Hittite* 
I  Israelite 
-|  Phoenician* 
VCarihaginian' 
/Arab 
\  Bedouin 

Abyssinian 


/  Punjabi 
\  Bengali 

Afghan 

Persian 

Armenian 
.Kurd 
/Albanian 
\  Greek 
r  Roman 
j  Italian 
I  French 
-   Spanish 
I  Portuguese 
I  Latin 
^     American 

Irish 

Manx 

Highland 
Scottish 
AVelsh 
\  Breton 
(Cornish* 
/  Lithuanian 
\  Lettish 

Russian 

Czech 

Polish 

Servian 
/^Norwegian 
-[  Swedish 
i  Danish 

Old  Saxon* 

Dutch 

Flemish 

Anglo-Saxon 

Cierman 

Saxon 

Swiss 

Austrian 


Georgian 

Circassian 

/Chechenz 

\  Lesghian 

rSamoan 
\  Maori 
l_Mar(|uesan 


352 


MAKIN 


IONS 


AND 


NATURE 


THE  BIRTH  &  GROWTH  OF  NATIONS 

BY    PROFESSOR    RATZEL 


IN  order  that  the  cosmic  conception  of  the 
^  hfe  of  man  may  be  more  than  a  mere 
isolated  idea,  incapable  of  being  applied 
and  developed,  it  is  necessary  to  indicate 
the  relation  which  human  life  bears  to  the 
collective  life  of  the  earth. 

Human  existence  is  based  upon  the 
entire  development  of  vegetable  and  ani- 
mal life ;  or,  as  Alexander  von  Humboldt 
said,  in  reality  the  human  race  partakes  of 
the  entire  life  on  earth.  Just  as  plants  and 
animals,  vegetable  and  animal  remains  and 
products,  occupy  an  intermediate  position 
between  man  and  the  inanimate  substance 
of  the  earth,  so  almost  without  exception 
the  life  of  man  depends  not  directly  upon 
the  earth,  but  upon  the  animals  and 
plants,  which  in  turn  are  im- 
mediately bound  to  the  earth 
by  the  necessities  of  existence. 
It  is  the  dependence  of  later 
and  more  evolved  types  upon  the  earlier 
and  less  evolved.  In  1845  Robert  Mayer, 
the  German  scientist,  pubhshed  his  epoch- 
making  thesis  on  "  The  Relations  of 
Organic  Motion  to  Metabolism,"  in  which 
he  described  the  vegetable  world  as  a 
reservoir  wherein  the  rays  of  the  sun  are 
transformed  into  life-supporting  material 
and  are  stored  up  for  use.  According  to 
his  view  the  physical  existence  of  the 
human  race  is  inseparably  linked  together 
with  this  "  economic  providence  "  ;  and 
he  even  went  so  far  as  to  connect  it  with 
the  instinctive  pleasure  felt  by  every  eye 
at  the  sight  of  luxuriant  vegetation. 

The  history  of  mankind  shows  how 
various  are  the  elements  contained  in 
this   reservoir,    and   how   manifold   their 

23 


Man  is 
Bound  up  with 
the  Earth 


action.  Originally  plants  and  animals 
share  the  soil  with  man,  who  must  struggle 
with  them  for  its  possession.  The  plains 
favour  and  the  forests  obstruct  historical 
movement  ;  the  inhabitant  of  the  tropics 
is  hardly  able  to  overcome  the  growth  of 
Man's  Fi  ht  ^^^"^^  that  covers  his  field  ; 
with  Pialls  l^'i,^^^  Esquimau  the  vege- 
and  Animals  table  world  exists  but  two 
months  m  the  year,  and  then 
only  in  stunted,  feeble  species.  The  unequal 
distribution  of  edible  plants  has  in  a  large 
measure  been  the  cause  of  divergence  in 
the  developments  of  different  races.  Aus- 
tralia and  the  Arctic  countries  have 
received  almost  nothing  ;  the  Old  World 
has  had  abundance  of  the  richest  gifts 
showered  upon  it,  Asia  receiving  more 
than  Africa  or  Europe.  The  most  valu- 
able of  domestic  animals  are  of  Asiatic 
origin.  America's  pre-European  history  is 
incomparably  more  uniform  than  that  of 
the  Old  World,  and  this  is  owing  to  her 
moderate  endowment  of  useful  plants 
and  almost  complete  lack  of  domestic 
animals.  The  transplanting  of  vegetable 
species  from  one  part  of  the  earth  to 
another,  carried  on  by  man,  is  one  of  the 
greatest  movements  in  the  collectiv-e  life  of 
the  world.  Its  possibilities  of 
extension  cannot  be  conjec- 
tured; for  the  successful 
diffusion  of  single  cultivated 
plants — the  banana,  for  example — over  a 
number  of  widely  separated  countries  is  yet 
problematical.  This  process  can  never  be 
considered  to  have  come  to  an  end  so  long 
as  necessity  forces  man  to  get  a  firmer  and 
firmer  hold  on  the  store  of  earthly  Ufe. 

353 


Spreading 
Life  Over 
all  the  Earth 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


The  relations  of  man  to  the  earth  are 
primarily  the  same  as  those  of  any  other 
form  of  life.  The  universal  laws  of  the 
diffusion  of  life  include  also  the  laws  of 
the  diffusion  of  the  human  species.  Hence 
the  study  of  the  geograi:)hical  distribution 
of  man  must  be  looked  upon  only  as  a 
branch  of  the  study  of  the  geographical 
distribution  of  life,  and  a  succession  of  the 
conceptions  belonging  to  the  latter. 

To  these  conceptions  belong  the  main 
area  of  distribution,  the  habitable  world, 
and  all  its  various  parts  :  zones,  continents, 
and  other  divisions  of  the  earth's  surface, 
especially  seas,  coasts,  interiors  of  lands, 
bordering  regions,  divisions  exhibiting 
continuity  with  others  as  links  in  a  chain, 
and  isolated  divisions.  Also  relations  as 
to  area  :  the  struggle  for  territory,  varia- 
tions in  the  life  development  in  small  or 
inextensive  regions,  in  insular  or  in  conti- 
nental districts,  on  heights  of  land  and 
plateaus,  and,  in  addition,  the  hindrances 
and  the  aids  to  development  presented 
by  different  conformations  ;  the  advance 
development  in  small,  densely  populated 
districts ;  or  the  protection  afforded  by 
isolated  situations.  All  must 
be  included.   Finally,  proper- 


The  Material 
Tie  that  Binds 
Men  Together 


ties  of  boundaries  must  be 
conceived  of  as  analogous  to 
phenomena  occurring  on  the  peripheries  of 
living  bodies. 

As  races  are  forms  of  organic  life,  it 
follows  that  the  state  cannot  be  compre- 
hended otherwise  than  as  an  organised 
being  ;  every  people,  every  state  is  organic, 
as  a  combination  of  organic  units.  More- 
over there  is  something  organic  in  the 
internal  coherence  of  the  groups  and  indi- 
viduals from  which  a  state  is  formed. 
However,  in  the  case  of  a  people  and  a 
state,  this  coherence  is  neither  material 
nor  structural ;  states  are  spiritual  and 
moral  organisms.  But,  together  with  the 
spiritual,  there  is  also  a  material  coherence 
between  the  individual  members  of  a  race 
or  a  nation.  This  is  the  connection  with 
the  ground.  The  ground  furnishes  the 
only  material  tie  that  binds  individuals 
together  into  a  state  ;  and  it  is  primarily 
for  this  reason  that  all  history  exhibits 
a  strong  and  ever-increasing  tendency  to 
associate  the  state  with  the  soil — to  root 
it  to  the  ground,  as  it  were. 

The  earth  is  not  only  the  connecting 
princi])le,  but  it  is  also  the  single  tangible 
and  indestructible  proof  of  the  unity  of 
the    state.      This    connection    does  not 

354 


decrease  during  the  course  of  history,  as 
might  be  supposed,  owing  to  the  pro- 
gressive development  of  spiritual  forces  ; 
on  the  contrary,  it  ever  becomes  closer, 
advancing  from  the  loose  association  of  a 
few  individuals  with  a  proportionately 
wide  area  in  the  primitive  community,  to 
the  close  connection  of  the  dense  popula- 
tion  of  a  powerful  state  with 
^     *  *     its  relatively  small  area,  as  in 

.  S  l  ^^^^  '^^^^  °^  ^  modern  civilised 
nation.  In  spite  of  all  dis- 
turbances, the  economic  and  political  end 
has  ever  been  to  associate  a  greater  and 
greater  number  of  individuals  with  the 
soil.  Hence  the  law  that  every  relation 
of  a  race  or  tribe  to  the  ground  strives  to 
take  a  political  form,  and  that  every 
political  structure  seeks  connection  with 
the  ground.  The  notion  of  an  unterri- 
torial  and  a  territorial  epoch  in  the 
history  of  man  is  incorrect ;  ground  is 
necessary  to  every  form  of  state,  and  also 
to  the  germs  of  states,  such  as  a  few 
negroes'  huts  or  a  ranch  in  the  Far  West. 
Development  consists  only  in  a  constant 
increase  in  the  occupation  and  use  of  land, 
and  in  the  fact  that,  as  populations  grow, 
so  do  they  become  ever  more  firmly 
rooted  in  their  own  soils. 

At  the  same  time  the  nature  of  the 
movements  of  peoples  must  change. 
Penetration  and  assimilation  of  one  race 
by  another  occur  instead  of  displacement 
of  one  by  another  ;  and  with  the  rapid 
decrease  of  unoccupied  territory  the  fate 
of  the  late-comers  in  history  is  irrevocably 
sealed.  Since  the  state  .is  an  organism 
composed  of  independent  individuals  and 
households,  its  decay  cannot  be  analogous 
to  the  death  and  corruption  of  a  plant  or 
an  animal.  When  plants  decay,  the  cells 
of  which  they  are  composed  decay  also. 
But  in  a  decayed  state  the  freed  individuals 
live  on  and  unite  together  into  new 
political  organisms  ;  they  increase,  and 
the  old  necessity  for  growth  continues  in 
the  midst  of  the  ruin.  The 
If  One  State      ^  ^^   nations   is    not   de- 

Embraced  the  ^tj.yctJo„  jt  jg  j^  remodelling. 
Whole  Earth  ,  r  .•  a  ; 

a    transformation.      A  great 

political  institution  dies  out  ;  smaller  insti- 
tutions arise  in  its  place.  Decay  is  a  life 
necessity.  Nothing  could  be  more  in- 
correct than  the  idea  that  the  growth  of 
nations  would  come  to  an  end  were  one 
state  to  embrace  the  whole  earth.  If  this 
were  to  happen,  long  before  the  great 
moment  of  union  came,  there  would  be 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


a  multitude  of  processes  of  growth  already 
in  operation,  ready  to  rebuild  in  case 
of  decadence,  and  to  provide  for  a 
new  organisation  if  needed.  As  yet  the 
political  expansion  of  the  white  races  over 
the  earth  has  not  resulted  in  uniformity, 
but  in  manifoldness. 

All  conditions  and  relations  of  peoples 

and   states    that    may   be  geographically 

described,    delineated,    sur- 

th!  Movements  ^'^^^^^  ^"^'  ^°^  ^^^  greater 
p     y"*"*  *  part,  even  measured,  can  be 
eop  cs  traced  back  to  movements — 

movements  that  are  peculiar  to  all  forms 
of  life,  and  of  which  the  origin  is  growth 
and  development.  However  various  these 
movements  may  be  in  other  respects,  they 
are  always  connected  with  the  soil,  and 
thus  must  be  dependent  upon  the  extent, 
situation,  and  conformation  of  the  ground 
upon  which  they  take  place.  Therefore,  in 
ev^ery  organic  movement  we  may  perceive 
the  activity  of  the  internal  motive  forces 
which  are  peculiar  to  life,  and  the  influences 
of  the  ground  to  which  the  life  is  attached. 
In  the  movements  of  peoples,  the  internal 
forces  are  the  organic  powers  of  motion 
common  to  all  creatures,  and  the  spiritual 
impulses  of  the  intellect  and  will  of  man. 
In  many  a  view  of  history  these  forces 
alone  appear ;  but  it  must  not  be  for- 
gotten that  they  are  conditioned  by  the 
fact  that  they  cannot  be  active  beyond 
the  general  limits  of  life,  and  they  cannot 
disengage  themselves  from  the  soil  to 
which  life  is  bound.  In  order  to  under- 
stand historical  movements  it  is  first 
necessary  to  consider  their  purely 
mechanical  side,  which  is  shown  clearly 
enough  by  an  inquiry  into  the  nature  of 
the  earth's  surface.  Neglect  of  this 
occasions  a  delay  in  the  understanding  of 
the  true  character  of  such  movements. 
Men  merely  spoke  of  geograjihy,  and 
treated  history  as  if  it  were  an  atmospheric 
phenomenon. 

Nations  are  movable  bodies  whose  units 

are    held  together  by   a  common  origin, 

language,    customs,    locality, 

a  ^ona.  ^^^j  qj^^^^  necessity  for  defence 

.    „.  .  — the    strongest    tie    of    all. 

in  History  .  .      ^  ,       . 

A  people  expands  m  one 
direction  and  contracts  in  another  ;  in  case 
of  two  adjacent  nations,  a  movement  in  the 
one  betokens  a  movement  in  the  other. 
Active  movements  are  responded  to  by 
passive,  and  vice  versa.  Every  movement 
in  an  area  filled  with  life  consists  in  a 
displacement    of    individuals.     There    are 


also  currents  and  counter-currents  :  when 

slavery   was    abohshed    in    the   Southern 

States  of  America,  an  emigration  of  white 

men  from  the  South  was  followed  by  an 

influx  of  ex-slaves  from  the  North,  thus 

causing  an  increase  in  the  black  majority 

of  the  South. 

Such    external    movements    of    peoples 

assume  most  varied  forms.     History  takes 

a  too  narrow  view  in  considering  only  the 

migrations  of  nations,  looking  upon  them 

as  great  and  rare  events,  historical  storms 

as  it  were,  exceptional  in  the  monotonous 

quiet  of  the  life  of  man.     This  conception 

of  historical  movements  is  very  similar  to 

the     discarded     cataclysmic     theory     in 

geology.     In  the  history  of  nations,  as  in 

the  history  of  the  earth,   a  great   effect 

does  not  always  involve  a  presupposition 

of   its   being   the   immediate   result   of   a 

mighty    cause.     The    constant    action    of 

small  forces  that  finally  results  in  a  large 

aggregate   of   effect   must   be   taken   into 

account  in  history  as  well  as  in  geology. 

Every  external  movement  is  preceded  by 

internal  disturbance  :   a  nation  must  grow 

from  within   in  order  to  spread  abroad. 

The    increase   of     Arabs    in 

^M   ^x  o  *  \°^^   Oman  led  to  an  emigration  to 
Must  Seek  t-      ^  at  •  1  u-    i.  c 

^       „  East  Africa  along  highways  of 

trattic  known  to  times  of  old. 
Merchants,  craftsmen,  adventurers,  and 
slav^es  left  their  native  land  and  drew 
together  in  Zanzibar,  Pemba,  and  on  the 
mainland.  The  process  was  repeated  from 
the  coast  to  the  interior,  and  as  a  result 
of  the  aggregate  labour  of  individuals  as 
merchants,  colonists,  and  missionaries, 
Arabian  states  grew  up  in  the  central 
regions  of  Africa.  Instances  of  the  occu- 
pation of  vacant  territories  are  of  the 
greatest  rarity  in  history  as  we  are 
acquainted  with  it.  The  best  example 
known  to  us  is  the  settlement  of  Iceland 
by  the  Northmen.  The  rule  is,  a  forcing 
in  of  the  immigrating  nation  between  other 
races  already  in  possession  ;  the  op{iosition 
of  the  latter  often  compels  the  former  to 
divide  up  into  small  groups,  which  then 
insinuate  themselves  peacefully  among 
the  people  already  established  in  the  land. 
The  movements  of  nations  resemble 
those  of  fluids  upon  the  earth  :  they 
proceed  from  higher  altitudes  to  lower  ; 
and  obstacles  cause  a  change  of  course, 
a  backward  flow,  or  a  division.  Though 
at  first  there  may  be  a  series  of  streams 
running  along  side  by  side,  there  is  a 
convergence  at  the  goal,  as  shown  by  the 


THE    NORTHMEN    TAKING    POSSESSION     OF    ICELAND 
Instances  of  peoples  taking  possession  of  uninhabited  lands  and  settling  therein  are  extremely  rare.     Iceland  is  the  best 
example  known     The  hardy  Northmen  took  possession  of  it  in  the  ninth  century,  but  found  the  country  untenanted. 

^S7 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


migration  of  different  peoples  to  a  common 
territory ;  there  is  concentration  when 
there  are  hindrances  to  be  overcome,  and 
a  spreading  out  where  the  ground  is  level 
and  secure.  One  race  draws  other  races 
along  with  it  ;  and,  as  a  rule,  a  troop  of 
wanderers  come  from  a  long  distance  will 
be  found  to  have  absorbed  foreign  elements 
on  its  way.  But  it  would  be 
The  Human     ^^^^^^  ^q  \qq\^  upon  the  move- 

ok  1  *  ments  of  nations  as  passive 
no  Obstacle     Qj^flg^yings^  or  even  to  deduce 

a  natural  law  from  the  descent  of  tribes 
from  the  mountains  to  the  river  valleys  and 
to  the  sea — an  idea  that  once  led  to  the 
acceptance  of  the  theory  of  the  Ethiopian 
origin  of  Egyptian  civilisation.  Either 
the  wills  of  individuals  unite  to  form  a 
collective  will,  or  the  will  of  a  single  man 
imposes  itself  upon  the  aggregate.  The 
human  will  knows  no  insurmountable 
obstacle  within  the  bounds  of  the  habitable 
earth. 

As  time  goes  on,  all  rivers  and  all  seas 
are  navigated,  all  mountains  climbed, 
and  all  deserts  traversed.  But  these  have 
all  acted  as  obstructions  before  which 
mov'ements  have  either  halted  or  turned 
aside,  until  finally  they  have  burst  the 
barriers.  At  least  two  thousand  years 
passed  from  the  time  of  the  first  journey 
of  a  Phoenician  ship  out  through  the 
Pillars  of  Hercules  into  the  Atlantic 
until  the  arrival  of  the  day  when  a  voyage 
across  was  ventured  from  Southern 
Europe.  The  Romans  turned  the  Alps, 
both  to  the  right  and  to  the  left, 
seven  hundred  years  after  their  city  had 
been  founded,  but  how  many  nooks  in 
the  interior  of  those  mountains  were 
unknown  to  them  even  centuries  later  ! 
Yet  to-day  Europe  feels  the  effect  of  this 
circumstance,  the  fact  that  the  Romans 
did  not  advance  straight  through  the 
Central  Alps  into  the  heart  of  the  Teutonic 
country.  They  followed  a  roundabout 
way  through  Gaul,  and  thus  Mediterranean 

culture  and    Christianity  were 

Naturr-t       ^^'"o^ght     to     Central    Europe 

a  urc  s       from  the  west  instead  of  from 

the  south  ;  hence  the  depend- 
ence of  the  civilisation  of  Germany  upon 
that  of  France. 

It  is  precisely  the  Romans'  who,  con- 
trasted with  barbarians,  show  us  that  will 
or  design  in  the  movements  of  nations 
does  not  necessarily  increase  with  growth 
of  culture,  even  though  culture  constantly 
puts  more  means  of  action  at  its  disposal, 

358 


improved  methods  of  transportation,  by 
which  the  way  may  be  lightened.  The 
mounted  bands  of  Celts  and  Germans 
crossed  the  Alps  quite  as  easily  as  did  the 
Roman  legions  ;  and  in  spreading  about 
and  penetrating  to  every  corner  of  the 
Alps  and  the  Pyrenees,  the  barbarians 
were  always  superior  to  the  Romans. 

Wandering  tribes  of  semi-civihsed 
people  are  smaller,  less  pretentious,  and 
less  encumbered.  In  every  war  that  has 
taken  place  in  a  mountain  land,  the 
greater  mobility  of  untrained  militia 
has  often  led  to  victories  over  regular 
troops.  Races  of  inferior  culture  are 
invariably  more  mobile  than  those  of  a 
higher  grade  of  civilisation  ;  and  they 
are  able  to  equalise  the  advantages  of  the 
superior  modes  of  locomotion  with  which 
culture  has  supplied  the  latter.  INIobility 
also  indicates  a  weaker  hold  upon  the 
ground,  and  thus  uncivilised  peoples  are 
more  easily  dislodged  from  their  territories 
than  are  nations  capable  of  becoming,  as 
it  were,  more  deeply  rooted.  In  nomadic 
races,  mobility  bound  up  with  the  necessity 
for    an    extensive    territory     assumes     a 

definite  form,  and,  owing  to  a 
w  *  H  ""**      constant       preparedness       for 
an  ^rers    ^^g^j^(;igj-ing  and    to  the  posses- 
of  the  Earth  ^      *="  •       ,         ^    ,  • 

sion  of  an  organised  marching 

system,  such  peoples  have  been  among  the 
greatest  forces  in  Old  World  history. 

Movements  of  nations  are  often  spoken 
of  as  if  certain  definite  directions  were 
forced  upon  them  by  some  mysterious 
power.  This  view  not  only  wraps  itself 
in  the  garment  of  prophecy — for  example, 
when  announcing  that  the  direction  in 
which  the  sun  travels  must  also  be  that 
of  history — but  it  formally  presupposes 
a  necessary  east-to-west  progression  of 
historical  movements,  endeavouring  to 
substantiate  its  doctrine  by  citation  of 
examples,  from  Julius  Caesar  to  the  gold- 
seekers  of  California.  -But  this  necessity 
remains  always  in  obscurity.  Not  only 
is  it  contradicted  by  frequently  confirmed 
reflex  movements  in  historical  times,  but 
it  is  also  disproved  still  more  by  the  great 
migrations  which  have  taken  place  on 
the  same  continent  in  contrary  directions. 
In  Asia  the  Chinese  have  spread  over  the 
entire  area  of  interior  plain  and  desert, 
westward  to  the  nation-dividing  barriers 
of  the  Pamir  Mountains  :  other  Asiatic 
races  have  overflowed  into  Europe — also 
from  east  to  west.  Contrariwise,  ever 
since  the  sixteenth  century  we  have  seen 


HOW  CIVILISATION  SPREAD  THROUGH  EUROPE 
The  inexorable  influence  of  physical  conditions  on  the  life  of  the  peoples  is  well  illustrated  by  the  influence 
of  the  Alps  in  deflecting  the  path  of  Mediterranean  culture.  These  mountains  hemmed  in  the  north  of  the 
Roman  Empire  and  forced  the  Romans,  in  their  expansion,  to  the  west.  Hence  Mediterranean  culture  and 
Christianity  were  carried  to  Central  Europe  from  the  west  instead  of  from  the  south,  and  the  civilisation 
of  Germany  depends  on  that  of  France.      The  map  shows  the  route  followed  by  the  stream  of  Roman  civilisation. 


the  Russian.s  at  work  conquering  the  entire 
northern  })art  of  the  continent,  constantly 
pressing  on  towards  the  east.  Even  the 
sea  proved  no  obstacle,  for  they  both 
discovered  and  acquired  Alaska  during 
the  course  of  this  same  movement. 

We  shall  not  attach  any  universal 
significance  to  such  fashionable  terms 
employed  in  historical  works  as  political 
or  historical  attraction,  elective  affinity 
or  balance  ;  least  of  all  shall  we  presume 
to  discover  occult,  mysterious  sources  for 
them.  It  is  obvious  that  a  powerful 
nation  will  overflow  in  the  direction  of 
least  resistance  ;  and  in  the  case  of  a 
strong  Power  confronting  one  that  is 
weak  there  is  a  constant  movement 
toward  the  latter.  Thus,  from  the  earliest 
times,  Egypt  has  pressed  on  toward  the 
south  ;  and  everywhere  in  the  Sudan  we 
find  traces  of  similar  movements  to  the 
south  as  far  as  Adamawa,  where  they  are 
still     to-day    in    energetic    continuance. 


The  history  of  colonisation  in  America 
shows  a  turning  of  the  streams  of  immigra- 
tion, in  the  south  as  well  as  in  the  north, 
towards  the  more  thinly  settled  regions ; 
the  more  thickly  populated  are  avoided. 
The  migrations  of  nations,  which  took 
place  during  periods  of  history  when  a 
surplus  of  unoccui)ied  land  existed,  were 
determined  to  a  great  extent  by  natural 
causes.  The  more  numerous  nations 
become,  the  greater  the  obstacles  to 
migration,  for  most  of  these  obstacles 
arise  from  the  very  nations  themselves. 

Nations  increase  with  their  jwpulations  ; 
lands  with  enlargement  of  territory.  So 
long  as  a  country  has  sufficient  area,  the 
second  form  of  growth  need  not  of  necessity 
follow  the  first — the  race  spreads  out  over 
the  gaps  which  are  open  in  the  interior, 
and  thus  internal  colonisation  takes  place. 
If  there  is  need  for  emigration,  occupiable 
districts  may  be  found  in  the  lands  of 
another    people — for    centuries     Germans 

359 


HISTORY    OF    THE    >3^70RLD 


have  thus  found  accommodation  in 
Austria,  Hungary,  Poland,  and   America. 

Of  course,  such  colonists  gradually  become 
absorbed  into  the  people  among  whom 
they  have  settled.  This  is  simple  emigra- 
tion, which  is  therefore  connected  with 
the  internal  colonisation  of  a  foreign  land. 
External  colonisation  first  comes  into 
being  when  a  state  acquires 
Mow  New  tgj-ritory  under  its  control,  into 
a!e  Born  ^^^^^^^^  territory,  if  it  be  suit- 
able, a  portion  of  the  inhabi- 
tants of  the  state  move  and  settle. 
Colonisation  is  not  necessarily  a  State 
affair  from  the  first.  If  a  race  inhabit  a 
country  so  sparsely  as  the  Indians  did 
America  in  the  sixteenth  century,  a 
foreign  people,  having  the  power  of 
spreading  out,  may  press  into  the  gaps 
with  such  success  that  this  initial  internal 
colonisation  may  also  be  advantageous 
from  a  political  standpoint.  The  State  then 
intervenes  and  appropriates  the  territory 
over  which  groups  of  its  inhabitants  have 
previously  acquired  economic  control. 

The  emigrants  formed  a  social  aggre- 
gate in  the  new  country,  and  from  this 
aggregate  a  state,  or  the  germ  of 
a  state,  develops.  Since  such  an 
economic-social  preparatory  growth  greatly 
assists  in  the  political  acquirement  of 
land,  it  is  obvious  that  this  form  of 
colonisation  is  especially  sound  and 
effectual.  The  opposite  method  follows 
when  a  state  first  conquers  a  territory 
which  it  occupies  later  with  its  own  forces  ; 
this  is  colonisation  by  conquest.  It  can 
be  capable  of  development  only  when 
subsequent  immigration  permanently 
acquires    the    land    as    a    dwelling-place. 

Conquest  that  neither  can  nor  will  take 
permanent  possession  of  the  soil  is  charac- 
teristic of  a  low  stage  of  culture ;  thus  the 
Zulu  states  in  Africa,  surrounded  by 
broad  strips  of  conquered  yet  uncon- 
trolled territory,  and  the  old  "  world- 
empires  "  of  Western  Asia,  exhausted 
,  themselves  in  vain  efforts  to 
y  ome  s  qV-j^^jj^  lasting  increase  of  area 
E^durtd  Long  through  aggressive  expedi- 
tions. That  the  Roman 
Empire  lasted  a  longer  time  than  any  of 
the  preceding  universal  empires  was  due 
to  the  single  fact  that  agricultural 
colonisation  invariably  followed  in  the 
footsteps  of  its  political  conquests. 

The  enlargement  of  a  nation's  area  is 
associated  with  soil  and  inhabitants.  If 
the    increase    of    territory — for    example, 

360 


through  conquest — is  much  more  rapid 
than  the  increase  of  population,  an 
inorganic,  loosely  connected  expansion 
results,  which,  as  a  rule,  is  soon  lost  again. 
If,  on  the  contrary,  population  increases 
at  a  proportionately  greater  rate  than 
area,  a  crowding  together,  checks  to 
internal  movements,  and  over-population 
follow.  In  consequence,  great  dis- 
crepancies between  growth  of  territory 
and  increase  of  population  lead  to  the 
most  varied  results.  The  conquering 
nation  expands  over  extensive  regions  for 
which  there  are  no  inhabitants.  Passive 
races  in  India  and  in  China  become  so 
crowded  together  that  it  is  impossible 
for  their  soil  to  support  them  any  longer  ; 
hence  a  continuous  degradation  and 
recurrent  periods  of  famine,  which  may 
bring  with  them  a  relatively  feeble  and 
unorganised   emigration. 

There  are  nations  with  whom  conquest 
and  colonisation  seem  to  follow  in  most 
profitable  alternation  :  this  appears  to 
have  been  the  case  with  all  colonising 
countries  of  modern  history  that  have 
followed  the  example  of  the  Roman 
Empire.  But  there  are  great 
contrasts  presented  even  by 
these  nations.  Germany, 
Austria,  and  Russia,  in  im- 
mediate connection  with  their  conquered 
provinces,  have  colonised  and  expanded 
toward  the  east.  In  spite  of  a  rapid 
increase  of  population,  Germany  has 
been  backward  in  establishing  trans- 
marine colonies,  while  France,  with  a 
proportionately  smaller  increase  of  popula- 
tion, began  by  colonising  in  all  directions, 
but  occupied  more  land  than  she  was 
able  to  master  ;  for  which  reason  colonisa- 
tion in  the  history  of  France  has  taken 
more  or  less  the  character  of  conquest. 
England,  on  the  contrary,  with  a  vigorous 
emigration  and  an  expansive  movement 
in  all  directions,  presents  an  example  of 
the  soundest  and  strongest  method  of 
founding  colonies  which  has  been  seen 
since  early  times. 

Through  the  entire  course  of  history 
an  ever-increasing  value  attached  to  land 
may  be  traced  :  and  in  the  expansion  of 
nations  we  may  also  see  that  mere  conquest 
is  growing  less  and  less  frequent,  while 
the  economic  acquisition  of  territory, 
l)iece  by  piece,  is  becoming  the  rule.  The 
getting  of  land  assumes  more  and  more 
the  character  of  a  peaceful  insinuation. 
The  taking  possession  of  distant  countries 


The  Modern 
Nations  as 
Colonisers 


f- 


■si 
§;-§ 


V 


V 


|wj3 


e 


O   =  u 
H  J)  -{^ 


H2 


H 

ID 

O, 

X 

o 

CC  —  u 

<  ■"  a 
«|^ 

c      ^3 

(->     0,-^ 
•— '   ™   0) 

>    °- 
!>    O  4) 

w  •-■§ 
o 


2  «l 

X  s  « 
Hu53 

S  « 
«).5 


1^ 


Z  "i 


rt.ti 


361 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


without  consideration  for  the  original 
inhabitants,  who  are  either  driven  away, 
or  murdered — speedily  with  the  aid  of 
bullets,  or  slowly  with  the  assistance  of 
gin  or  contagious  diseases  or  by  being 
robbed  of  their  best  land — is  to-day  no 
longer  possible.  Colonisation  has  become 
a    well-ordered    administration    combined 

with  instruction  of  the  natives 

omc     ew    1^    useful   employments.     The 

p  ^  m"*        °^^  method  has  left  scarcely  a 

single  pure-blooded  Indian  east 
of  the  Mississippi  in  the  United  States, 
and  not  one  native  in  Tasmania ;  the 
new  method  has  before  it  the  problem 
how  to  share  the  land  with  negroes — 
in  the  Transvaal  with  74  per  cent. 
and  in  Natal  with  82  per  cent. 
Climatic  conditions  are  also  to  be  taken 
into  consideration,  for  Caucasians  are 
able  to  develop  all  their  powers  in 
temperate  regions  only ;  a  hot  climate 
impels  them  to  ensure  the  co-operation  of 
black  labour  through  coercion. 

During  the  course  of  centuries  a  motley 
collection  of  countries  has  developed,  all 
of  which  are  called  colonies,  although 
they  stand  in  most  striking  contrast  with 
one  another.  Several  are  nations  in 
embryo,  to  which  only  the  outward  form 
of  independence  is  lacking ;  not  a  few 
have  once  been  independent ;  and  many 
give  the  impression  that  they  will  never 
be  fit  for  self-government.  There  are 
some  in  which  the  native  population  has 
become  entirely  extinct,  such  as  Tasmania, 
Cuba,  and  San  Domingo  ;  others  in  which 
the  original  inhabitants,  still  keeping  to 
their  old  customs  and  institutions,  are 
guided  and  exploited  by  a  few  white  men 
only  ;  and,  finally,  colonies  in  which  the 
rulers  and  the  natives  have  assimilated 
with  one  another,  as  in  Siberia.  Once 
upon  a  time  such  tokens  of  the  youth  of 
races  as  may  be  seen  in  rude  but  re- 
munerative labour  on  unlimited  territory 
were  widespread  in  many  colonies.     But 

-,  ...  the  new  countries  fill  up  visibly, 
Mankind  ,  , ,  ,  ,  /     . 

.  .         and  even  they  show  that  man- 

ges wi        i^ip(^  j^g  g^  whole,  ages  the  more 
Civilisation  '.,       ,,  '    fL  n    j 

ra])idiy  the  more  the  so-called 

progress  of  civilisation  is  hastened.  How- 
ever, an  examination  of  the  peoples  of 
the  present  day  shows  that  the  differences 
in  age  between  mother-countries  and 
colonies  will,  indeed,  continue  for  a  long 
time  yet.  Such  differences  exist  between 
west  and  east  Germans  as  well  as  between 
New  Englanders  and  Californians  ;    they 

362 


are  even  to  be  detected  in  Australia, 
between  the  inhabitants  of  Queensland 
and  of  New  South  Wales.  Such  differences 
are  shown  not  only  in  the  characteristics 
of  individuals,  but  also  in  the  division  of 
land  and  in  methods  of  labour. 

Divergence  and  differentiation  are  the 
great  factors  of  organic  growth.  They 
govern  the  increase  of  nations  and  states 
from  their  very  beginnings.  Since,  how- 
ever, these  organisms  are  composed  of  in- 
dependent units,  differentiation  does  not 
consist  in  an  amalgamation  and  transfor- 
mation of  individuals,  but  in  their  diffusion 
and  grouping.  Therefore  the  differentiation 
of  nations  becomes  eminently  an  affair 
of  geography.  Never  yet  has  a  daughter 
people  left  its  mother-country  to  become 
an  independent  state  without  a  previous 
disjunction  having  taken  place.  All  growth 
is  alteration  in  area,  and,  at  the  same 
time,  change  in  position.  The  further 
growth  extends  away  from  the  original 
situation,  the  sooner  dismemberment  fol- 
lows. In  Australia,  New  South  Wales 
spreads  out  towards  the  north,  and  at  the 
new  central  point,  Brisbane,  a  new  colony, 
-,    .  Queensland,    is  formed,   which 

„  . .  J         already  differs  materially  from 

N  New  South  Wales.  And  Queens- 

land itself  expands  towards  the 
north,  beyond  the  tropic  of  Capricorn 
into  the  torrid  zone ;  and  a  younger, 
tropical  North  Queensland  develops. 

The  fact  that  nations  hold  fast  to  their 
natural  conditions  of  existence,  even 
when  growth  impels  them  towards  expan- 
sion in  various  directions,  is  a  great  con- 
trolling force  in  historical  movement. 
Russia  expands  in  its  northern  zone  to 
the  Pacific  ocean ;  England  continues  its 
growth  on  American  soil,  across  the 
Atlantic,  in  almost  the  same  latitude.  The 
Phoenicians,  as  a  coast-dwelling  people, 
remained  on  the  coasts  and  on  the  islands  ; 
the  colonising  Greeks  ever  sought  out 
similar  situations  to  those  of  their  native 
land ;  the  Netherlanders  are  found 
everywhere  in  Northern  Germany  as 
colonists  of  the  moors  and  marshes.  All 
German  colonies  beyond  the  Alps  and 
the  Vosges  have  disappeared  ;  and  the 
few  Germans  that  remain  are  Latinised. 
Nations  that  are  accustomed  to  a  limited 
territory,  as  were  the  Greeks,  always  search 
for  a  similar  limited  area  ;  on  the  other 
hand,  the  Romans  discov^ered  a  main 
factor  of  empire-building  in  their  judicious 
agricultural  colonisation  of  broad  plains  ; 


LANDMARKS    OF    PAST   AGES:   FAMOUS    FORTRESSES   THAT    HAVE    CEASED    TO    BE    OF    USE 
With  the  changing:  conditions  of  politics,  places  once  of  enormous  importance  have  often  become  mere  curiosities. 
There    are    in    Europe    to-day  hundreds  of  useless  castles,   fortresses,  and  harbours.       Even   Dover  Castle  is  of 
little  strategic  value.     The  fortresses  illustrated  are  (i)  Mantua,  (2)   Dover,  (3)   Chillou,   (4)  Calais,   (5)   Verona. 

Photographs  by  Frith  and  Neurdein 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


and  the  Russians  sought  and  found 
in  Siberia  the  endless  forests,  steppes, 
and  vast  rivers  of  their  native  land. 
Every  nation,  in  expanding,  seeks  to  in- 
clude within  its  area  that  which  is  of 
the  greatest  value  to  it.  The  victorious 
state  acquires  the  best  positions  and  drives 
the  conquered  race  into  the  poorest 
districts.  For  this  reason 
competition  between  the  colo- 


The  Genius 
of  the 
Coloniser 


nising  nations  has  become  very 
keen ;  they  all  judge  of  the 
character  of  territory  according  to  the  same 
standard.  Therefore,  wherever  England 
has  colonised,  only  a  gleaning  remains  for 
the  rest  of  the  Northern  and  Central 
European  Powers. 

Differentiation,  arising  from  the  valua- 
tion of  land,  is  the  cause  of  a  constant 
creation  of  new  political  values  and  of  a 
constant  lapsing  of  old.  Every  portion  of 
the  world  has  its  political  value,  which, 
however,  may  become  dormant,  and  must 
then  be  either  discovered  or  awakened. 
Such  a  discovery  was  the  selection  of  the 
Pirreus  as  the  harbour  for  Athens  from 
among  a  number  of  bights  and  bays. 

Every  settlement  and  every  founding 
of  a  city  is  at  bottom  an  awakening  of  dor- 
mant political  value.  Capacity  for  recog- 
nising this  value  is  a  part  of  the  genius  of  a 
statesman,  whose  policy  may  be  called  far- 
seeing  }:)artly  because  he  is  able  to  discern 
the  dormant  value  while  yet  on  the 
most  distant  horizon.  It  is  obvious  that 
political  values  vary  ;  each  is  determined 
by  the  point  of  view  from  which  it  is 
looked  upon.  The  French  and  the  German 
valuations  of  the  Rhine  borderland  are 
very  different.  Every  nation  endeavours 
to  realise  the  political  value  which  it 
recognises  ;  and  in  respect  to  political 
growth,  ends  are  set  up  in  the  shape  of  the 
portions  of  the  earth  to  which  that  gi"owth 
aspires.  Peculiarities  in  the  conformation 
of  states  may  be  traced  back  to  an  appre- 
ciation of  the  value  of  coasts,  passes, 
^i    ».r    ,,   estuaries,  and  the  like.     With 

The  World 


is  Being 
Centralised 


the  spreading  out  and  the  con- 
centration of  nations,  such 
}:)ortions  of  the  world  as  are 
important  from  a  political  point  of  view 
have  marvellously  increased  both  in 
number  and  in  value.  But  for  this  very 
reason  a  choice  of  selection  has  become 
necessary,  and  this  we  see  in  the  use  of 
fewer  Aljiine  passes  during  the  age  of 
railways  than  before,  and  in  the  concen- 
tration of  a  great  commerce  into  fewer 

364 


seaports — into  such  as  are  capable  of 
accommodating  vessels  of  the  deepest 
draught.  Others  must  withdraw  from 
competition.  To-day  there  are  hundreds 
of  worthless  harbours,  passes,  and  for- 
tresses in  Europe  that  were  once  situated 
on  the  highways  of  historical  movement ; 
now,  however,  they  are  avoided,  deserted 
by  the  current  of  traffic. 

There  are  more  things  necessary  to 
an  understanding  of  the  dependence  of 
history  on  natural  conditions  than  a  mere 
knowledge  of  the  land  upon  which  the 
development  has  taken  place,  particularly 
than  a  mere  knowledge  of  the  ground  as 
it  was  when  history  found  it.  Although 
each  country  is  in  itself  an  independent 
whole,  it  is  at  the  same  time  a  link  in  a 
chain  of  actions.  It  is  an  organism  in 
itself,  and,  in  respect  to  a  succession  or  a 
group  of  lands  forming  a  whole,  of  which 
it  is  a  member,  it  is  also  an  organ.  Some- 
times it  is  more  organism  than  organ  ; 
sometimes  the  opposite  is  true  ;  and  an 
eternal  struggle  goes  on  between  organism 
and  organ.     If  the  latter  be  a  subjected 

...    .  province,  a  tributary  state,   a 

All    the  J         U4.  t.  1 

„  .. .  .     ,    daughter  country,  a  colony,  or 

Rubbish     of  '^L  r  -V       J  J.-  i.V, 

-,.  ...  ,.  member  01  a  coniederation,  the 
Civilisation     ...  .  .     ■,  -.  . 

strivmg    lor    mdependence    is 

always  a  struggle  for  existence. 

This  by  no  means  presupposes  a  state 
of  war.  Not  only  war,  but  the  out- 
wardly peaceful  economic  development 
of  the  world's  industries  reduces 
organisms  to  organs.  When  the  whole- 
sale importation  of  bad  but  cheap  pro- 
ducts of  European  industries  into 
Polynesia  or  Central  Asia  causes  decay  in 
the  production  of  native  arts  and  crafts,  it 
is  a  loss  to  the  life  of  the  whole  people  ; 
henceforth  the  race  will  be  placed  in  the 
same  category  with  tribes  that  must  gather 
rubber,  prepare  palm-oil,  or  hunt  elephants 
to  supply  European  demand,  and  who  in 
turn  must  purchase  threadbare  fabrics, 
spirits  that  contain  sulphuric  acid,  worn- 
out  muskets,  and  old  clothes — in  a  word, 
all  the  rubbish  of  civilisation. 

Their  economic  organisation  dies  ;  and  in 
many  cases  this  is  also  the  beginning  of  the 
decline  and  extinction  of  a  people.  The 
weaker  organism  has  succumbed  to  the 
more  powerful.  Is  the  case  so  different — 
that  of  Athens,  unable  to  live  without 
the  corn,  wood,  and  hemp  of  the  lands  on 
the  Northern  Mediterranean  coast  ? — or 
of  England,  whose  inhabitants  would 
starve  were  it  not  for  the  importation  of 


THE    BIRTH    AND    GROWTH    OF    NATIONS 


meat  and  grain  from  North 
America,  Eastern  Europe,  and 
Australia  ? 

In  vain  have  men  sought 
for  characteristics  in  the 
rocks  of  the  earth  and  in  the 
composition  of  the  air  by 
which  one  land  might  be 
distinguished  from  another. 

The  idea  of  great,  lasting, 
conclusive  qualitative  varia- 
tions in  different  parts  of  the 
earth  is  mythical.  Neither  the 


Hisr- 


unconditionally  rejected  by 
even  Alexander  von  Hum- 
boldt. The  degeneration  and 
wasting  away  of  the  Ameri- 
can Indians  would  certainly 
be  a  less  disgraceful  j)heno- 
menon  could  it  be  attributed 
to  some  great  natural  law 
instead  of  to   the   injustice, 


Garden  of  Eden  nor  the 
land  of  Eldorado  belongs 
to  reality.  There  is  no 
country  whose  soil  bestows 
wonch^ous  strength  upon  man 
or  an  exuberance  of  fruit  ful- 
ness upon  woman.  In  India 
precious  stones  are  as  little 
a])t  to  grow  out  of  the  cliffs  as 
silver  and  gold  are  likely  to 
exude  from  fissures  in  the 
earth.  Nor  is  there  any  basis 
for  the  slighter  dififerences 
between  the  Old  World  and 
the  New  which  the  philoso- 
phers of  history  of  the 
eighteenth  century  believed 
they  had  discovered.  The 
opinion  that  the  New  World 
produces  smaller  plants,  less 
powerful  animals,  and  finally 
a  feebler    humanity,  was  not 


MAN'S    WONDERFUL    TRIUMPH     OVER    NATURE 
By   irrigation   the   arid   desert   of  California  has   been    made    to    blossom 
as  the  rose  in   the  luxurious   orange   groves   of  Riverside.     These   views 
show  the  desert,  the  method  of  irrigation,  and  the  resuit  of  man's  labour. 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


greed,  and  vices  of  the  white  men.  In 
the  course  of  development  of  the 
European  daughter-nations  in  America 
we  cannot  recognise  any  such  great  and 
universal  distinction.  The  course  of  his- 
tory in  America,  just  as  in  corresponding 
periods  of  time  in  Northern  Asia,  in  Africa, 
and  in  Austraha,  only  confirms 
How  Man      ^^^  ,^gjjgf  ^^^^  j^^^^^  -^^^  matter 

th  E  th  ^  ^"^  distant  from  one  another 
they  may  be,  whenever  their 
climates  are  similar,  are  destined  to 
be  scenes  of  analogous  historical  deve- 
lopments. 

It  is  certain  that,  so  far,  one  of  the 
greatest  results  of  the  labour  of  man  has 
been  the  levelling  and  overcoming  of  natural 
differences.  Steppes  are  made  fertile 
through  irrigation  and  manuring ;  the 
contrast  between  open  and  forest  land 
becomes  less  and  less — indeed  the  destruc- 
tion of  forests  is  being  far  too  rapidly  and 
widely  carried  out — the  acclimatisation  of 
men,  animals,  and  plants  causes  varia- 
tions to  disappear  more  and  more  as  time 
[)asses.  We  can  look  forward  to  a  time 
when  only  such  extremes  as  mountains 
and  deserts  will  remain — every\vhere  else 
the  actions  of  the  earth  will  be  equalised. 
The  process  by  which  this  is  carried 
out  may  be  described  shortly.  Man,  in 
spite  of  all  racial  and  national  differ- 
ences, is  fundamentally  quite  as  much 
of  a  unity  as  the  soil  upon  which  he 
dwells  ;  through  his  labour  more  and  more 
of  this  character  of  unity  is  transmitted 
to  the  earth,  which,  as  a  result,  also  be- 
comes more  and  more  uniform. 

One  of  the  most  powerful  of  the  ties  by 
which  history  is  bound  to  Nature  is 
that  of  its  dependence  on  the  ground.  At 
the  first  glance  any  given  historical 
development  is  involved  with  the  earth 
only — the  earth  upon  which  the  develop- 
ment takes  place.  But  if  we  search  deeper 
we  shall  find  that  the  roots  of  the  develop- 
ment extend  even  to  the  fundamental 
principles  of  the  planetary 
system.  By  this  it  is  not 
meant  that  every  history 
must  be  founded  on  a  cosmo- 
logical  basis,  that  it  must  begin  with  the 
creation,  or,  at  least,  with  the  destruction  of 
Troy,  as  was  once  thought  necessary  ;  but  it 
is  certainly  safe  to  say  that  a  philosophy 
of  the  history  of  the  human  race,  worthy 
of  its  name,  must  begin  with  the  heavens 
and  then  descend  to  the  earth,  filled 
with  the  conviction  that  all  existence  is 

366 


History 
from  Heaven 
to  Earth 


fundamentally  one — an  indivisible  con- 
ception founded  from  beginning  to  end  on 
an  identical  law. 

The  316,250,000  square  miles  of  the 
earth's  surface  is  the  first  area  with 
which  history  has  to  do.  Within  it  all 
other  surface  dimensions  are  included ; 
it  is  the  standard  for  measurement  of  all 
other  areas,  and  also  comprehends  the 
absolute  limits  of  all  bodily  life.  This 
area  is  fixed  and  immutable  so  far  as  the 
history  of  mankind  is  related  to  it,  although 
in  respect  to  the  history  of  the  world 
it  is  not  to  be  looked  upon  as  having 
been  unalterable  in  the  past,  or  as  being 
likely  to  remain  unchanged  in  the  future. 

The  earth's  surface  may  be  divided 
into  three  unlike  constituent  parts — 
84,250,000  square  miles  of  land,  220,000,000 
square  miles  of  water,  and  13,750,000 
square  miles  of  ice-covered,  and  for 
the  greater  part  unexplored,  land  and 
sea  in  the  Northern  and  Southern  Polar 
regions.  The  land  is  the  natural  home 
of  man,  and  all  his  historical  movements 
begin  and  end  upon  it.  The  size  of  states 
is  computed  according  to  the  amount  of 
3.6.250.000  1^"^^  ^hich  they  include  ;  their 
Miles  growth  has  derived  its  nourish- 

of  History  ""^^'"^  ^^^.^  ^he  84,250,000 
square  miles  of  earth  as  from 
a  widespread  fundamental  element.  The 
sea  is  not  to  be  looked  upon  as  an  empty 
space  between  the  divisions  of  land, 
merely  separating  them  one  from  another, 
for  the  220,000,000  square  miles  of  water 
are  also  of  historical  importance,  and  the 
area  of  every  ocean  and  of  every  portion 
of  an  ocean  has  its  historical  significance. 
History  has  extended  itself  over  the  sea, 
from  island  to  island,  from  coast  to  coast, 
at  first  crossing  narrow  bodies  of  water, 
later  broad  oceans  ;  and  states  whose  foun- 
dations arose  from  connections  by  sea 
remain  dependent  on  the  sea.  The 
Mediterranean  held  together  the  different 
parts  of  the  Roman  Empire  just  as  the 
oceans  unite  the  Colonies  of  the  British 
Empire. 

The  variations  of  the  earth's  form 
from  that  of  a  perfect  oblate  spheroid  are 
so  small  that  they  may  be  entirely  dis- 
regarded from  the  point  of  view  of  history. 
All  portions  of  the  earth's  surface  may  be 
looked  upon  as  of  equal  curvature  ;  the 
pyriform  swelling  which  Columbus  be- 
lieved to  be  a  peculiarity  of  the  tropic  zones 
in  the  New  World  was  merely  an  optical 
illusion.     Thus  all  portions  are  practically 


THE    BIRTH    AND    GROWTH    OF    NATIONS 


similar,  and  uniformity  obtains  over 
the  entire  earth  to  such  an  extent  that 
there  is  room  left  only  for  minor  inequali- 
ties in  configuration.  To  these  belong  the 
differences  in  level  between  lands  and  seas, 
highlands  and  lowlands,  mountains  and 
valleys.  Such  variations  amount  to  very 
little  when  compared  with  the  earth  as 
a  whole  ;  for  the  height  of  the  tallest  of 
the  Himalayas  added  to  the  earth's  radius 
would  increase  its  length  by  about  ^},^ 
only  ;  and  the  same  may  be  said  of  the 
greatest  depressions  beneath  the  level  of 
the  sea — inequalities  that  cannot  be  re- 
presented on  an  ordinary  globe.  Their 
great  historical  significance  is  due  chiefly  to 
the  fact  that  the  oceans  and  seas  occupy 
the  depressions,  from  which  the  greatest 
elevations  emerge  as  vast  islands. 

The  remaining  irregularities  of  the 
earth's  surface  are  not  sufficient  to  pro- 
duce any  permanent  variations  in  the 
diffusion  of  races  or  of  states.  Their 
influence  is  merely  negative  ;  they  may 
only  hinder  or  divert  the  course  of  man 
in  his  wanderings.  Even  the  Himalayas 
have  been  crossed— by  the  Aryans  in  the 
west,  and  by  the  Tibetans  in 
rrcgu  ar      ^^^    ^^^^  .   ^^^    British    India 

.  E  th  ^^^  extended  its  boundaries  far 
beyond  them  to  the  Pamirs. 
The  historian  is  concerned  with  but  two 
of  the  variable  qualities  of  the  land — 
differences  in  level  and  differences  in 
contour.  Variations  in  constitution, 
development,  elementary  constituents,  and 
the  perpetual  phenomena  of  transforma- 
tion and  dissolution  which  present  a 
thousand  problems  to  the  geographer, 
scarcely  exist  for  the  historian.  Nor  are 
those  great  inequalities,  the  depressions 
in  which  the  seas  rest,  of  any  interest 
to  him.  It  is  indifferent  whether  the 
greatest  of  such  depressions  be  covered 
by  live  miles  of  water,  or,  as  we  now 
know,  by  almost  six  miles.  The  fact  that 
the  Mediterranean  reaches  its  greatest 
depth  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  Ionian 
Sea  has  nothing  whatever  to  do  with 
the  history  of  Greece. 

To  be  sure,  there  is  a  general  connec- 
tion between  the  depth  of  the  Mediter- 
ranean, shut  up  within  the  Straits  of 
Gibraltar,  and  the  climate  of  the  neigh- 
bouring regions,  which  has  a  direct 
influence  on  the  inhabitants  of  Mediter- 
ranean countries  ;  but  it  is  a  very  distant 
connection,  and  it  is  only  mentioned  here 
in  order  to  remind  the  reader  that  there 


is  not  a  single  phenomenon  in  Nature 
that  is  not  brought  home  to  mankind  at 
last.  Still,  as  a  rule,  history  is  concerned 
with  the  depths  of  the  sea  only  in  so  far 
as  they  are  the  resting-places  for  sub- 
marine telegraph  cables  ;  and  this  is  a 
fact  of  very  recent  times.  It  may  be 
said  that  the  formation  of  the  earth's 
crust  occurred  at  a  period  too 
^^    *  remote  to  have   had    any    in- 

r-..    g  fluence  on  the  history  of  man, 

and  that  therefore  all  questions 
concerning  it  should  be  left  to  geology. 
The  first  statement  may  be  admitted, 
but  the  latter  does  not  follow  by  any 
means  ;  for  if  the  whole  Mediterranean 
region  from  the  Caucasus  to  the  Atlas 
Mountains,  and  from  the  Orontes  to  the 
Danube,  is  a  region  of  uniform  conforma- 
tion, it  is  purely  by  reason  of  a  uniformity 
in  development.  In  the  same  manner 
there  is  an  extensive  region  of  uniform 
conformation  to  the  north,  between  the 
Atlantic  Ocean  and  the  Sudetic  Moun- 
tains in  Austria. 

There  are  great  features  of  the  earth's 
conformation  that  are  so  extensive  that 
groups  of  nations  share  them  in  common. 
Russia  and  Siberia  occupy  the  same 
plain  upon  which  the  greater  portions  of 
Germany,  Belgium,  and  Holland  are 
situated.  Germany  and  France  share 
the  central  mountain  system  which  ex- 
tends from  the  Cevennes  to  the  Sudeten, 
or  Sudetic  Mountains.  A  mere  participa- 
tion in  a  common  geological,  feature 
produces  such  affinity  and  relationship 
as  may  be  seen  in  the  Alpine  states,  in 
Sweden  and  Norway,  and  in  the  nations 
of  the  Andes.  This  reminds  us  of  the 
groups  of  nations  that  surround  seas  ; 
but  that  which  separates  the  Baltic 
states  binds  them  together ;  and  the 
mountains  that  unite  the  Swiss  can- 
tons also  separate  them  from  one 
another.  Lesser  features  of  conforma- 
tion divide  countries  and  often  exhibit 
gaps  and  breaches  in  develop- 
ment, for  the  reason  that  they 
divide  a  political  whole  into 
separate  natural  regions.  The 
history  of  the  lowlands  of  North  Germany 
differs  greatly  from  that  of  the  moun- 
tainous districts  of  the  same  country  ; 
the  lowlands  of  the  Po  and  Apennine 
Italy  are  two  different  lands.  The 
gi-eat  contrast  between  the  hilly  manu- 
facturing west  of  England  and  the  low- 
lying  agricultural  east  extends  throughout 

Z^7 


Nature 
Divides  and 
Unites 


SCENERY    THAT    SHAPES    CHARACTER :      TH 


THE     MOUNTAINS 


The  stories  of  mountain  peoples  are  very  similar ;   the  Highlanders  of  Scotland,  Wales,  Switzerland,  the  Cevennes, 
and  Tyrol,  have  many  characteristics  m  common,  owing  their  rugged  nature  and  independence  to  environment. 


English  history ;  and  in  hke  manner 
the  highlands  and  the  lowlands  are 
opposed  to  each  other  in  Scotland. 

Wherever  mountain  formations  occur 
largely  in  a  country,  the  question  arises 
whether,  in  spite  of  all  diversity,  they 
unite  to  form  a  whole,  or  whether  they 
exist  as  separate,  independent  neigh- 
bouring parts.  The  elements  of  the 
surface  formation  of  the  earth  are  not 
only  historically  important  in  themselves 
as  units,  but  also  on  account  of  the  way 
in  which  they  are  connected  with  one 
another.  We  have  in  Greece  an  example 
of  an  exceedingly  intricate  mountain 
system  in  which  barren  plateaus  are 
interspersed  with  fertile  valleys  and  bays. 
Owing  to  the  sea,  such  bays  as  those  of 
Attica,  Argos,  and  Lamia  are  to  a  high 
degree  self-dependent  ;  they  became  little 
worlds  in  themselves,  independent  states, 
which  could  never  have  grown  into  a 
united  whole  had  they  not  been  subjected 
to  external  pressure. 

The  reverse  of  this  state  of  disunion, 
arising  from  the  juxtaposition  of  a  great 
number  of  different  formations,  is  the 
division  of  North  America  into  the  three 
great  regions  of  the  Alleghanies,  the 
Mississippi  Valley,  and  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tain    plateau,     which     gradually     merge 

368 


into  one  another  and  are  bound  into  a 
whole  by  the  vast  central  valley.  Austria- 
Hungary  includes  within  itself  five 
different  mountain  features — the  Alps, 
Carpathians,  Sudeten,  the  Adriatic  pro- 
vinces, and  the  Pannonian  plains.  Vienna 
is  situated  where  the  Danube,  March,  and 
Adria  meet,  and  from  this  centre  radiates 
all  political  unifying  power.  If  a  still 
closer-knit  unity  is  co-existent  with  a 
diversified  geological  formation  of  insular 
or  peninsular  nature,  as  in  Ireland  or 
Italy,  it  follows  that  this  unity  binds  the 
orographic  divisions  into  an  aggregate. 
The  discrepancies  between  Apennine 
Italy,  Italy  of  the  Po  Valley,  and  Alpine 
Italy,  which  have  been  evident  in  all 
periods  of  history,  formed,  in  their  rise 
and  in  their  final  state  of  subjugation  to 
political  force,  an  example  of  dissimilarity 
of  mountain  features  existing  within 
peninsular  unity. 

The  great  continental  slopes  are  also 
important  aids  to  the  overcoming  of 
orographic  obstacles  to  political  unity. 
In  Germany  there  is  a  general  inclination 
towards  the  north,  crossed  and  recrossed 
by  a  number  of  mountain  chains  and 
successions  of  valleys.  It  is  not  to  be 
denied  that  the  intersecting  elevations 
have  furthered  political  disunion.    Without 


A 


-J-'-^    »-i^3B-    i-"~J-'  -^•^■"'^^'^S^^:-    ."         "  '-IP 


THE    SOFTENING    EFFECT    OF    THE    RICH     AND    FRUITFUL    LOWLANDS 
Whereas  mountains   breed  independence   and  rug-ged   character   in  their  inhabitants,   the   more   fruitful   lowlr.nds 
develop  a  gentler  race,  loving  the  companionship  of  communities.      The  lowlands,  also,  are  the  homes  of  mixed  races. 


doubt,  a  gradual  slope  from  the  southern 
part  of  Germany  to  the  sea,  with  a 
consequent  partition  of  the  country  by 
the  rivers  into  strips  extending  from 
east  to  west,  would  have  been  attended 
by  a  greater  political  unity.  Again,  but 
in  another  way,  the  preponderance  of 
any  one  orographic  element  has  a  unifying 
effect  on  all  the  other  elements,  as  we 
have  seen  in  North  America,  where  the 
simple,  even  course  of  development  has 
been  in  conformity  with  the  existence  of 
geological  formations  on  a  large  scale. 

There  are  internal  differences  in  for- 
mation in  every  mountain  range  and  in 
every  plain,  all  of  which  have  different 
influences  on  history.  The  steep  fall  of 
the  Alps  on  the  Italian  side  has  rendered 
a  descent  into  the  plains  of  the  Po  far 
easier  than  a  crossing  in  the  opposite 
direction,  where  many  obstacles  in  the 
'shape  of  mountain  steeps,  elevated 
plateaus,  and  deep  river  valleys  surround 
the  outer  border  of  the  Alps.  Again, 
penetration  from  the  plains  to  the  interior 
of  the  Alps  is  less  diflicult  in  the  west, 
where  there  are  no  southern  environing 
mountains,  than  in  the  east,  where  there 
is  such  a  surrounding  mountain  chain. 
The  compact  formation  of  the  Alps  in 
the  west  crowds  obstacles  together  into 
a  small  space,  where  they  may  be  overcome 

24 


with  greater  labour  and  in  a  shorter  time 
than  in  the  east,  among  the  broadened- 
out  chains  of  mountains,  where  there  are 
numerous  smaller  hindrances  to  pro- 
gression spread  out  over  a  wider  territory. 
The  route  from  Vienna  to  Trieste  is  twice 
as  long  as  that  from  Constance  to  Como. 

In  mountain  passes  orographic  differ- 
ences are  concentrated  within  very  limited 
areas,  and  for  this  reason  passes  are  of 
great  importance  in  history.  The  value 
of  gorges  and  defiles  increases  with  their 
rarity,  and  their  number  varies  greatly  in 
different  mountain  chains.  The  Pindus 
range  is  broken  but  once,  by  the  cleft  of 
Castoreia,  and  an  easy  passage  from 
Northern  to  Central  Greece  is  possible  only 
by  way  of  Thermopylae ;  the  short 
overland  route  from  Persia  to  India  is 
through  the  Khyber  or  Bolan  Passes.  The 
Rhaetian  Alps  are  rich  in  defiles  and  gorges  ; 
but  the  mountain  ridges  are  poor  in 
crossing-places,  and,  as  a  rule,  the  elevation 
of  the  passes  decreases  towards  the  east. 

The  possibility  of  journeying  over  the 
Himalayas  increases  as  we  travel  west- 
ward. During  the  Seven  Years  War  the 
great  difference  between  the  accessible, 
sloping  Erz-Gebirge  of  the  Bohemian 
frontier  and  the  precipitous,  fissured, 
sandstone  hills  of  the  Elbe  was  very 
apparent.     Mountain   passes    are    always 

369 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


closely  connected  with  valleys  and  rivers  ; 
the  latter  form  the  ways  leading  to  and 
from  the  former.  The  valleys  of  the 
Reuss  and  the  Tessin  are  the  natural 
routes  to  the  pass  of  St.  Gothard  ;  and 
were  it  not  for  the  gorges  of  the  Inn  and 
the  Etsch  in  the  northern  and  the  southern 
Alps,  the  Brenner  Pass  would  not  possess 
,  anything  like  its  present  su- 
ature  s       pj-g^ng  importance.     Wherever 

Flace  in  ,  ,  ,  a. 

„.  such  entrances  to  passes  meet 

IS  ory  together  or  cross  one  another, 
important  rallying-points  either  for  carry- 
ing on  traffic  or  for  warlike  undertakings 
are  formed  ;  such  places  are  Valais, 
Valteline,  and  the  upper  valley  of  the  Mur. 
Coire  is  a  meeting-point  of  not  less  than 
five  passes — the  Julier,  Septimer,  Spliigen, 
St.  Bernardin,  and  Lukmanier.  The 
value  of  passes  varies  according  to  whether 
they  cross  a  mountain  range  completely 
from  side  to  side,  or  extend  through  only 
a  part  of  it.  When  the  Augsburgers,  on 
the  way  to  Venice,  had  got  through  the 
Fern  Pass,  or  that  of  Leefeld,  the  Brenner 
still  remained  to  be  crossed  ;  but  when 
the  Romans  had  surmounted  the  difficul- 
ties of  Mont  Genevre,  the  ridges  of  the 
Alps  were  no  longer  before  them  ;  they 
were  in  Gaul. 

There  are  also  passes  through  cross 
ridges  that  connect  mountain  chains,  such 
as  the  Arlberg,  that  pierces  a  ridge  extend- 
ing between  the  northern  and  the  central 
Alj>s.  Passes  of  this  sort  are  of  great 
importance  to  life  in  the  mountains,  for,  as 
a  rule,  they  lead  from  one  longitudinal 
valley  to  another,  such  valleys  extending 
between  ridges  being  the  most  fertile  and 
protected  districts  in  mountainous  regions. 
In  this  manner  the  Furka  Pass  connects 
Valais,  the  most  prosj)erous  country  of 
the  Alps  during  the  time  of  the  Romans, 
with  the  upper  Rhine  valley ;  and  the 
Arlberg  connects  the  Vorarlberg  with  the 
upper  valley  of  the  Inn. 

Mountain  passes  are  not  only  highways 
for    traffic,    they  are    the  arteries  of   the 
mountains  themselves.      Com- 
j  j^         .    merce  along  the  mountain  ways 
p  leads  to  settlements  and  to  agri- 

culture at  heights  where  they 
would  hardly  have  developed  had  it  not  been 
for  the  roads  ;  and  the  highest  permanent 
dwellings  are  situated  in  and  about  passes. 
The  Romans  established  their  military 
colonies  in  the  neighl)ourhood  of  passes, 
and  the  German  emperors  rendered  the 
Rh.x'tian    gorges    secure    through    settle- 

370 


ments.  There  are  political  territories  that 
are  practically  founded  on  mountain 
passes.  The  kingdom  of  Cottius,  tributary 
to  the  Romans,  was  the  land  of  the  defiles 
of  the  Cottian  Alps  ;  Uri  may  be  desig- 
nated as  the  country  of  the  north  Gothard, 
and  the  Brenner  Pass  connects  the  food- 
producing  districts  of  the  Tyrol  with, 
one  another. 

The  transition  point  from  one  geological 
formation  to  another  is  invariably  the 
boundary  line  between  two  districts  that 
have  different  histories.  The  movements 
in  one  region  bring  forces  to  bear  on  the 
movements  in  the  other.  Hence  the 
remarkable  phenomena  which  occur  on 
mountain  borderlands.  The  historical 
effects  of  mountainous  regions  are  opposed 
by  forces  that  thrust  themselves  in  from 
without ;  external  powers  anchor  them- 
selves, as  it  were,  in  the  mountains,  seek- 
ing to  obtain  there  both  protection  and 
frontier  lines.  Rome  encroached  more 
and  more  upon  the  Alps,  first  from  the 
south,  and  then  from  the  west  and  the 
north,  by  extending  her  provinces. 
Austria,     Italy,    Germany,     and    France 

n  ...  r-  . ,  have  drawn  up  to  the  Alps  on 
Battlefields     -t-rr         -        j  -i  1 

,  .,       ,  .    dmerent   sides ;     they   merely 
of  Mountain   r   n  i_      i  \v,  ^    ■ 

„  .  ,  .  tall  back  upon  the  mountains, 
Borderlands  ,  ^.,     .  .  ,. 

however ;     their     centres     he 

beyond.  The  same  phenomenon  is  shown 
in  the  regions  occupied  by  different  races. 
Rhsetians,  Celts,  Romans,  Germans,  and 
Slavs  have  penetrated  into  the  Alps  ;  but 
the  bulk  of  their  populations  have  never 
inhabited  the  mountainous  districts.  The 
question  as  to  which  nation  shall  possess 
a  mountain  chain  or  pass  is  always  decided 
on  the  borders.  Here  are  the  battlefields  ; 
here,  too,  are  the  great  centres  of  traffic 
whose  locations  put  one  in  mind  of 
harbours  situated  at  points  where  two 
kinds  of  media  of  transmission  come  into 
contact  with  each  other.  This  margin, 
like  that  of  the  sea,  also  has  its  promon- 
tories and  bays. 

Height  of  land  obstructs  historical  move- 
ments and  lengthens  their  course.  The 
Romans  remained  at  the  foot  of  the  Alps 
for  two  centuries  before  they  made  their 
way  into  them,  forced  to  it  by  the  constant 
invasion  of  Alpine  robbers  who  descended 
from  the  heights  as  if  sallying  forth  from 
secure  fortresses.  Long  before  this  the 
Romans  had  encircled  the  western  side 
of  the  Aljis  and  had  begun  to  turn  the 
eastern  side.  The  colonies  on  the  Atlantic 
coast  of  America,  the  predecessors  of  the 


THE     BANDITS    WIFE 
ThP  effect  of  life  in  the  hills  is  clearly  seen  in  this  picture  by  Leopold  Robert,  whopainted  it  after  living  among  the 
"Brigands  of    he  Momta  ns  "  and  stu/ying  their  wilcfand  picturesque  life.     The  assocfat.on  of  peoples  with  mountains 
devellpsa  rugged  character  and  gives  tliat  strength  and  independence  which  mountain  races  have  displayed  in  history. 


United  States,  had  been  in  existence  for 
almost  two  hundred  years  before  they 
passed  the  Alleghanies^  and  it  is  certain 
that  this  damming  up  of  the  powerful 
movement  towards  the  west,  which  arose 
later,  had  a  furthering  influence  on  the 
economic  and  political  development  of 
the  young  states.  The  passes  of  the 
Pyrenees     occur      at     about    two-thirds 


of  the  distance  from  the  level  ground 
to  the  summits  of  the  mountains ;  in 
the  Alps  the  elevation  of  the  gorges  is 
but  one-half  or  one-third  that  of  the 
mountain  tops  ;  hence,  as  a  whole,  the 
Alps  are  more  easy  of  access  than  the 
Pyrenees.  The  Colorado  plateau  is  a 
greater  obstacle  than  the  Sierra  Nevada 
range  in  California,   which,   although  of 

37^ 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


much  greater  elevation,  slopes  gently  and 

is    interspersed    with    broad    valleys.     It 

was  due  rather  to  the  forests  than  to  the 

moderate  elevation  of  the  central  mountains 

of   Germany   that  their    settlement    was 

delayed  until  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth 

centuries.     The    influence   of    the    broad, 

desert    tableland  of    the  great    basin    in 

separating  the  western  from  the  Mississippi 

states  is  greater  than  that  of  the  Rocky 

Mountains  with  peaks  more  than  twelve 

thousand   feet  in  height.     The  extensive 

glacial     formations   and    the    sterility   of 

the  mountains  in  Scandinavia  have   held 

Sweden    and    Norway    asunder,    and    at 

the  same  time  have  permitted  the  Lapps 

and    their    herds    of    reindeer    to    force 

themselves  in  between  like  a  wedge.     The 

broad,   elevated  steppes  of  Central  Tien- 

schan  enabled  the  Kirghese  to  cross  the 

mountains  with  their  herds  and   to  spread 

abroad  in  all  directions. 

In  such  cases  the  natives  of  tablelands 

and    mountainous     regions,    who   inhabit 

little  worlds  of  their  own  on  the  heights, 

themselves  contribute  not  a  little  towards 

rendering  it  difficult  to  pass  through  their 

countries.  The  most  striking 

,J    ,/        *t.     example  of   this  is   Central 

Worlds  on  the    .    •  it-    .l  j- 

„    .    .  Asia  with  its  nomadic  races, 

whose  influence  in  separating 
the  great  coast-nations  of  the  east,  west,  and 
south  from  one  another  has  been  far  more 
potent  than  that  of  the  land  itself.  And 
these  nomads  are  a  direct  product  of  the 
climate  and  the  soil  of  this  greatest  plateau 
in  the  world.  The  dry  tablelands  of  North 
America,  from  the  Sierra  Madre  in 
Mexico  to  Atacama  in  the  south,  were  in 
early  times  inhabited  by  closely  related 
races,  having  more  or  less  similar  institu- 
tions and  customs.  A  like  effect  of  life  on 
plateaus,  shown  in  the  Caucasus  Moun- 
tains, that  have  preserved  their  character 
as  a  barrier  against  both  Romans  and 
Persians,  and  have  been  crossed  by  the 
Russians  only  in  recent  times,  points  to  a 
further  reason  for  the  sundering  influence 
of  the  wall-like  position  of  mountains 
between  the  steppes  and  the  sea.  Phe- 
nomena similar  to  those  observed  in 
Central  Asia  and  in  North  America  occur 
on  a  smaller  scale  in  every  mountainous 
country  —  extensive  uninhabited  table- 
lands in  which  man  and  free  nature 
come  into  direct  contact  with  each  other. 
Independent  development  is  thus  assured 
to  the  dwellers  on  mountains,  and  to  their 
states  a  preponderance  of  territory  over 

372 


population.  The  political  importance  of 
Switzerland  is  not  owing  to  its  three 
millions  of  inhabitants,  but  to  the  impos- 
sibility of  occupying  one-fourth  of  the 
Alps.  The  position — almost  that  of  a 
Great  Power^held  by  Switzerland  during 
the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries  was 
due  to  the  union  of  this  element  of 
.  strength    (and    the    fact    that 

-,  ^^  y^  ...    Switzerland,    by   reason   of  its 

Touch  with        .,         ,  ■  ■       1     J  r  - 1 

^,  ,  situation,  includes  many  of  the 

Nature  ,        •  '  ,       ,  -^  ■    , 

most     important     commercial 

routes  in  Europe)  with  the  mountain-bred 
spirit  of  liberty  and  independence  of  its 
people.  In  other  respects,  too,  mountain 
states  stand  pre-eminent  among  nations — 
as  Tyrol  outshone  all  other  Austrian  pro- 
vinces in  i8og,  so  the  mountain  tribes  of 
the  Caucasus  were  the  only  Asiatics  able 
to  offer  any  permanent  resistance  to  the 
advance  of  the  Russians.  The  broad, 
rough  character  of  a  highland  country  is 
an  active  force  ;  in  all  mountain  wars  it 
has  led  to  the  spreading  out  of  armies  and 
to  the  lengthening  of  columns. 

The  support  afforded  by  mountains  to 
weak  nations  that  without  the  protection 
of  a  great  uninhabited  region  would  not 
have  been  able  to  maintain  their  inde- 
pendence can  be  likened  only  to  the  pro- 
tection which,  as  we  have  seen,  is  given 
by  the  sea.  Switzerland  has  often  been 
compared  to  the  Low  Countries ;  and 
there  is  even  a  still  greater  resemblance 
between  city  cantons  such  as  Basle  and 
Geneva  and  ports  like  Hamburg  and 
Liibeck.  It  was  owing  to  similar  reasons 
that  the  strongholds  of  French  Protes- 
tantism during  the  sixteenth  century  were 
the  Cevennes,  Berne,  and  La  Rochelle. 
The  protection  given  by  mountains  must 
not  be  looked  upon  as  of  an  entirely 
passive  nature,  for  the  rugged  nature  of 
mountaineers,  and  their  concentration 
within  small  areas  where  a  development  is 
possible,  rendering  them  conscious  of  inde- 
pendence and  assisting  them  to  preserve  it, 
are  also  a  result  of  life  in 
the  highlands.     In  low-lying 


Mountains  the 
Friends  of 


Weak  Nations 


countries  difference  in  levels 
cannot  exceed  a  thousand 
feet ;  and,  as  the  variations  in  conformation 
are  correspondingly  small,  the  lowlands 
offer  fewer  hindrances  to  historical  move- 
ments than  do  rivers,  seas,  and  marshes — 
thus  there  is  a  greater  opportunity  for  the 
development  of  such  movements  upon  the 
plains.  Consequently  there  is  a  rapid  diffu- 
sion of  races  over  extensive  regions  whose 


THE    BIRTH    AND    GROWTH    OF    NATIONS 


boundaries  are  determined  by  area  rather 
than  by  conformation. 

Lowlands  hasten  historical  movements. 
There  is  no  trace  of  the  retarding  and 
protecting  effects  of  the  highlands  in 
lands  where,  as  Labu  said  of  Saxony,  a 
nation  dwells  together  with  its  enemies 
on  the  same  boundless  level.  Nomadism 
is  the  form  of  civilisation 
Effect  of  characteristic  of  broad  plains 
Mountams  ^^^  extensive  tablelands.  But 
on  People  ^^^  Germanic  races  of  history,  a 
great  part  of  which  were  no  longer  nomads, 
exhibited  a  hastening  in  their  movement 
towards  the  west  when  they  reached  the 
lowlands  ;  for  they  appeared  on  the  lower 
Rhine  at  an  earlier  time  than  on  the  upper 
Rhine,  delayed  in  their  wanderings  to- 
wards the  latter  by  the  mountainous, 
broken  routes.  Long  after  the  Celts  had 
disappeared  from  the  lowlands,  when  their 
memory  only  was  preserved  in  the  names 
of  hills  and  rivers,  they  still  continued  to 
exist  in  the  protected  mountain  regions  of 
Bohemia.  In  like  manner,  in  later  times, 
the  Slavs  maintained  themselves  in  natural 
strongholds  after  they  had  vanished  from 
the  plains  of  Northern  Germany.  Com- 
pare the  conquest  of  Siberia,  accomplished 
in  a  century,  with  the  endless  struggles 
in  the  Caucasus.  And  what  lowland 
country  can  show  remnants  of  people 
equivalent  to  those  of  the  Caucasus  ? 

The  lowlands  are  also  regions  of  the  most 
extensive  mingling  of  races.  We  have 
but  to  think  of  Siberia  or  the  Sudan. 
In  the  development  of  states,  lowlands 
take  precedence  over  mountainous  dis- 
trict. Rome  expanded  from  the  sea-coast 
to  the  Apennines,  and  from  the  valley 
of  the  Po  to  the  Alps  ;  the  conquest  of 
Iberia  began  in  the  one  great  plain  of  the 
peninsula,  in  Andalusia,  and  in  the  low- 
lands of  the  Ebro  ;  and  foreign  control 
of  Britain  ended  at  the  mountains  of 
Scotland  and  Wales.  In  North  America 
colonisation  spread  out  in  broad  belts  at 
the  foot  of  the  Alleghanies 
The  Natural  before  it  penetrated  into  the 
Strongholds  of  j^o^ntains.  In  Southern 
Nomad  Races  ^j^.^^  ^^^  mountains  with 
their  unsubdued  tribes  are  like  political 
islands  in  the  midst  of  the  Mongolised  hills 
and  plains. 

The  lesser  the  differences  in  level,  and 
the  smaller  the  conformations  of  the 
earth,  the  more  important  are  those 
differences  that  remain  within  heights  of 
less  than  a  thousand  feet  above  the  sea. 


Elevations  of  a  dozen  yards  were  of  the 
greatest  importance  on  the  battlefields  of 
Leipzig,  Waterloo,  and  Metz.  The  signifi- 
cance of  the  little  rise  in  the  land  of 
Gavre,  near  Ghent,  lies  in  the  fact  that 
even  at  times  of  flood  a  foundation  for  a 
bridge  will  remain  firm  upon  it.  The 
slightest  elevation  in  the  lowland  cities  of 
Germany  and  Russia  offers  such  a  contrast 
in  altitude  to  its  surroundings  that  a 
fortress,  a  cathedral,  or  a  kremlin  is 
erected  upon  it.  The  two  ridges  that 
extend  through  the  plains  of  North 
Germany  are  not  only  very  prominent  in 
the  landscape,  but  also  in  history.  Owing 
to  their  thick  forests,  their  lakes  and 
marshes,  and  small  populations,  they  are 
peculiarly  like  barriers  ;  and  the  breaches 
in  them  are  of  importance  to  the  geo- 
graphy both  of  war  and  of  commerce. 
The  battles  fought  against  Sweden  and 
Poland,  round  about  the  points  where  the 
Oder  and  the  Vistula  cross  these  regions, 
are  to  be  counted  among  the  most  decisive 
struggles  in  the  history  of  Prussia. 

Wherever  there  are  no  differences  in 
level,  a  substitute  is  sought  in  water. 
In  such  cases  wide  rivers  or 
numerous  lakes  and  marshes 
form  the  most  effective 
obstacles,  boundaries,  and 
strongholds.  Finally  the  plains  approach 
the  sea  and  are  submerged  by  it  ;  and  here 
lowland  countries  find  a  support  safer  than 
that  of  the  mountains,  and  richer  in  piolitical 
results.  North  Germany  is  supported  by 
the  sea  ;  South  Germany  by  mountains. 
Which  boundary  is  the  more  definite,  the 
more  capable  of  development,  politically 
and  economically  ?  Political  superiority 
is  ever  connected  with  the  protection  and 
support  of  the  sea. 

The  influences  of  vegetation  upon 
historical  movements  are  often  more 
important  than  those  of  the  earth- 
formation  itself.  Wherever  extensive 
lowland  regions  are  overgrown  with  grass, 
we  always  find  mobile  nomadic  races  that, 
with  their  large  herds  and  warlike  organi- 
sations, are  great  causes  of  disturbance  in 
the  development  of  neighbouring  lands. 
Since  the  form  of  vegetable  growth 
which  covers  grass  steppes  and  prairies 
is  dependent  on  climate,  it  follows  that 
nomadism  is  prevalent  throughout  the 
entire  northern  sub-temperate  zone, 
where  such  grass  is  abundant — from  the 
western  border  of  Sahara  to  Gobi. 
Nomadic   races   of   historical   significance 

373 


Nature 

at 

Waterloo 


"*'^S(*J- 


NOMADIC    PEOPLES    OF    THE    NEW    WORLD 

Wherever  there  are  vast  lowland  countries  covered  with  grass,  nomadic  peoples  are  found  moving 
from  place  to  place  with  their  herds.  There  are  many  such  peoples  in  the  Old  World  and  a  few  m 
the  New  World,  notable  among  the  latter  bemg  the  Gauchos  of  the  Pampas,  types  of  whom  are  here  seen. 

are  even  to  be  seen  in  the  New  World — 
for  example,  the  Gauchos  of  the  Pampas, 
and  the  Llaneros  of  Venezuela. 

In  comparison  with  plains  and  prairies, 
forests  are  decided  hindrances  to  his- 
torical movements.  Peoples  are  separated 
from  one  another  by  strips  of  woodland  ; 
the  state  and  the  civilisation  of  the  Incas 
ceased  at  the  fringe  of  primeval  forest  of 
the  east  Andes.  Thickly-wooded  moun- 
tains present  the  most  pronounced  diffi- 
culties to  historical  movements.  The 
appearance  of  the  oldest  large  states  and 
centres  of  culture  on  the  borders  of 
steppes,  in  the  naturally  thinly-wooded 
districts  at  the  mouths  of  rivers,  and  on 
diluvial  plains,  seems  natural  enough  to 
us  when  we  think  of  the  difhculties  pre- 
sented by  life  in  a  forest  glade  to  men 
who  had  only  stone  implements  and  fire 
at  their  command. 

A  description  of  the  difficulties  encoun- 
tered during  Stanley's  one  hundred  and 
fifty-seven  days'  journey  through  the 
primeval  woods  of  Central  Africa  gives  us 
a    very    clear    conception    of    what    are 


termed  "  hindrances  "  to  historical  move- 
ments. The  early  history  of  Sweden  has 
been  characterised  as  a  struggle  with  the 
forest  ;  and  this  description  is  valid  for 
every  forest  country.  The  forest  divides 
nations  from  each  other  ;  it  allows  only 
small  tribes  to  unite,  and  creates  but  small 
states,  or,  at  the  most,  loosely  bound 
confederations.  It  is  only  where  a  great 
river  system  forms  natural  roads,  as  in 
the  regions  of  the  Amazon  and  the  Congo, 
that  great  forest  districts  ma}'  be  rapidly 
united  to  form  a  state.  In  other  cases 
settlements  in  forest  clearings  and  road- 
breaking  precede  p)olitical  control. 

In  this  way  the  Chinese  conquered  the 
races  of  the  western  half  of  Formosa  in  two 
hundred  years  ;  in  the  eastern  half  the 
land  is  still  under  forest  and  the  natives 
have  also  retained  their  independence. 
The  existence  of  small  states,  with  their 
many  obstacles  to  political  and  economic 
growth,  still  continues  in  forest  regions 
alone  ;  and  the  roaming  hordes  of  hunters 
inhabiting  them  belong  to  the  simplest 
forms  of  human  societies. 


376 


o 


THE  MAKING 

OF  THE 
NATIONS— II 


Professor 

FREDERICK 

RATZEL 


LAND    AND    WATER    AND    THE    GREATNESS 

OF    PEOPLES 


CINXE  man  is  a  creature  capable  only  of 

*^     life  on  land,  bodies  of  water  must  at 

one  time  have  been  the  greatest  obstacles 

to  his  diffusion.  Thus  the  original  family  of 

human  beings  could  have  inhabited  only 

one  portion  of  the  earth,  to  which  it  was 

restricted  by  impassable  barriers  of  water. 

We  know  that  in  early  geological  times  the 

division  of  the  earth's  surface  into  land 

and  water  was  subject  to  the  same  general 

laws  as  to-day  ;    therefore  such  a  portion 

of  the  earth  could  not  have  been  more 

than  a  part  of  the  total  land  in  existence — 

a  larger  or  smaller  world-island. 

The   first   step   beyond   the   bounds   of 

this  island  was  the  first  step  towards  the 

conquest  of  the  whole  earth  by  man.   The 

first  raft  was  therefore  the  most  important 

contrivance  that  man  could  have  invented. 

It    not    only  signified    the    beginning    of 

the  acquisition  of  all  parts  of  the  earth 

to    their  very  farthest  limits,  but    also — 

and  this  is  far  more  important — the  poten- 

_    ,   .,     ,    tiality   for   all    possibilities    of 

Early  Man  Si-        -^  j        ± 

f5r*«f^«f       divergence      and      temporary 

separation  offered  by  our  planet. 

It  brought  with  it  escape  from 
the  development  that  always  turns  back 
upon  itself,  travelling  in  a  circle,  and  the 
progress  that  constantly  consumes  itself — 
factors  inseparable  from  life  confined  within 
a  small  area  ;  it  led  to  the  creation  of 
fruitful  contrasts  and  differences,  and  to 
wholesome  competition — in  short,  to  the 
beginning  of  the  evolution  of  races  and 
peoples.  Looked  at  from  this  point  of 
view,  even  the  discovery  of  Prometheus 
has  been  of  less  moment  to  the  progress 
of  mankind  than  that  of  the  inventor  who 
first  joined  logs  together  into  a  raft  and 
set  out  on  a  voyage  of  discovery  to  the 
nearest  islet. 

From  the  time  of  this  first  step  onward, 
the  development  of  the  human  race  was 
so  intimiately  connected  with  the  unin- 
habitable water  that  one  of  its  most 
powerful  incentives  lay  in  the  struggle 
with  the  sea.  And  so  little  have  we 
advanced  from  this  condition  that  the 
stoutest  race  of  the  present  day  is  one  that 


Greatest 
Invention 


from  a  narrow  island  commands  the 
ocean.  England's  strength  is  a  proof  of 
the  tremendous  importance  of  the  sea  as 
a  factor  of  political  power  and  of  civilisa- 
tion. But  not  to  exaggerate  the  signifi- 
cance of  the  ocean,  we  may  at  the  same 
^  time  remember  that  it  consists 

c  ^.  *  in  the  fact  that,  by  means  of 
Sea  IS  ,,  u-   u 

J  the   sea,    ojien    highways     are 

mp  r  an  presented  from  land  to  land. 
Command  of  the  sea  is  a  source  of  great- 
ness to  nations,  for  it  facilitates  dominion 
over  the  land. 

By  reason  of  its  consistency  the  water 
is  an  important  agent  of  levelling  and 
equalising  effects.  As  we  perceive  this  in 
Nature,  so  do  we  also  in  history.  A  race 
familiar  with  the  sea  in  one  place  is  fami- 
liar with  it  in  all  regions.  The  Normans 
off  the  coast  of  Finland,  and  the  Spaniards 
in  the  Pacific,  found  the  same  green, 
surging  element,  moved  by  the  same  tides, 
subject  to  the  same  laws.  The  ocean  has 
an  equalising  effect  upon  the  coasts  even  ; 
the  dunes  of  Agadir  and  of  the  harbour 
at  Vera  Cruz  awaken  memories  of  home 
in  the  mind  of  the  sailor  from  Hela.  The 
diffusion  of  the  sea  over  three-quarters  of 
the  earth's  surface  must  also  be  taken  into 
account.  Thus  the  influence  of  the  ocean 
in  rendering  men  familiar  with  different 
parts  of  the  world  is  far  greater  than  that 
of  the  land.  From  the  ocean  comes  a 
constant  unifying  influence  which  ever 
tends  to  reduce  the  disuniting  effect  of 
the  separation  of  land  from  land.  As  yet 
no  attempt  to  extend  boundaries  beyond 
the  land  out  over  the  sea  has  been  followed 
by  lasting  success. 

No  nation  can  or  ever  will  possess  the 
sea.     Carthage  and   Tarentum  wished  to 

VT  KT  .•  forbid  Italian  vessels  the  pas- 
No  Nation  X   xu     T       ■    ■  u 

_  sage  of  the  Laciman  capes  by 

can  Possess  .    ^   .  .1        \r        .  •  i      •      j 

.     g  treaty ;   the  Venetians  desired 

dominion  over  the  Adriatic  to 

be  granted  them  by  the  Pope  ;  Denmark 

and  Sweden  strove  for  a  dominion  over 

the  Baltic  Sea  ;   but  all  this  is  against  the 

very  nature  of  the  sea  ;    it  is   one   and 

indivisible.    Only  near  by  the  coast,  within 

377 


History  of  the  world 


The  Se&'s 

Unifying 

Influence 


the  three-mile  Hmit  of  international  law, 
and  in  landlocked  bays,  may  it  be  ruled 
as  land  is  ruled.  The  claims  of  the 
Americans  concerning  the  sovereignty  of 
Behring  Sea  have  never  been  recognised, 
and  England  can  retain  dominion  over  the 
Irish  Sea  only  by  means  of  her  naval 
power.  The  ocean  has  a  unifying  influence 
on  the  land,  even  when  this 
influence  consists  only  in  the 
same  ends  to  be  attained  being 
placed  before  different  nations. 
During  a  time  of  the  greatest  disunion, 
German  cities  that  lay  far  enough  from 
one  another  were  united  by  Baltic  interests. 
The  union  of  scattered  land-forces  pre- 
pared the  way  for  the  opening  up  of 
wider  horizons  to  England  in  the  sixteenth 
century  in  the  same  manner  as  for  Italy 
and  Germany  in  the  nineteenth. 


/ 


gain  from  piracy  that  lures  men  forth, 
many  a  ship  has  returned  to  port  bearing 
with  it  inestimable  benefits  to  mankind  ; 
for  the  greatest  maritime  discoveries  have 
not  been  mere  explorations  of  new  seas, 
but  of  new  lands  and  peoples.  Such 
discoveries  as  these  have  contributed  most 
to  the  broadening  of  the  historical  horizon. 
Even  political  questions  expand,  assume 
a  larger  character,  and  often  become  less 
acute,  when  they  emerge  from  the  narrow 
limits  of  continental  constraint  upon  the 
free  and  open  coasts.  This  is  true  even  of 
the  Eastern  Question,  to  the  solution  of 
which  definite  steps  were  taken  upon 
the  Mediterranean  when  it  seemed  to 
have  come  to  a  deadlock  in  the  Balkan 
peninsula. 

The    ocean    is    no    passive    element    to 
maritime  races.    By  deriving  power  from 


/ 


THE    LITTLE    ISLAND    THAT    RULES    THE    SEA 
The  command  of  the  sea  is  the  source  of  national  greatness,  as  it  facilitates  dominion  over  land.     England 
from  a  narrow  island  dominates  the  sea.    The  tiny  part  of  white  in  the  Eastern  Hemisphere  on  this  page  shows 
how  relatively  insignificant  Great   Britain  is   to  the  vast  world  of  waters  where  her  shipping  is  supreme 


Sea  power  is  far  more  closely  connected 
with  traffic  than  is  land  power  ;  in  fact, 
the  foundation  of  sea  power  is  trade  and 
commerce.  It  is,  however,  more  than 
mere  commercial  power  and  monopoly 
of  trade.  In  spite  of  all  egoism,  greed, 
and  violence  there  remains  one  great 
characteristic  peculiar  to  maritime  Powers, 
spared  even  by  Punic  faith  and  Venetian 
covetousness.  Even  the  neighbourhood 
of  the  ocean  is  characterised  by  its  vast 
natural  features  ;  rivers  broaden  as  they 
approach  the  sea,  great  bays  lie  within  the 
coasts,  and,  though  the  latter  may  be 
flat,  the  horizon  lines  of  their  low  dune 
landscapes  are  broad.  The  horizons  of 
maritime  races  are  also  broad.  Whether  it 
be  the  hope  of  profit  from  commerce  or  of 

378 


the  sea  they  become  subject  to  the  sea. 
The  more  strength  they  draw  from  the 
ocean,  the  less  firm  becomes  their  footing 
upon  the  land.  Finally,  their  power  no 
longer  remains  rooted  in  the  land,  but 
grows  to  resemble  that  of  a  fleet  resting 
upon  the  waves  ;  it  may  with  but  small 
expenditure  of  effort  extend 
its  influence  over  an  enor- 
mously wide  area,  but  it  may 
also  be  swept  away  by  the  first 
storm.  As  yet  all  maritime  nations  have 
been  short-lived  ;  their  rise  has  been 
swift,  often  surprisingly  so  ;  but  they  have 
never  remained  long  at  the  zenith  of  pros- 
perity, and,  as  a  rule,  their  decay  has  been 
as  rapid  as  their  elevation  to  power.  The 
cause  of  the  fall  of  all  maritime  nations 


Short-lived 
Nations 
of  the  Sea 


MANS    FIRST    STEP    TOWARDS    THE    CONQUEST    OF    THE    EARTH 
The    most    momentous    event    in    the    early   history    of  man    was    the  launching  of  the  first   raft.      That  moment 
was  instinct  with  all  the  mighty  conquests    and    discoveries    yet    to   be    accomplished   over   seas ;    and    even  the 
discovery  of  fire,   says  Professor  Ratzel,   has  been  of  less  moment  to  the  progress  of  mankind  than  that  of  the 
inventor  who  first  jomed  logs  together  into  a  raft  and  set  out  on  a  voyage  of  discovery  to  the  nearest  islet 

379 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


has  been  the  smallness  of  their  basis, 
their  foreign  possessions,  widely  separated 
from  one  another  and  difficult  to  defend, 
and  their  dependence  upon  these  foreign 
possessions.  In  many  cases  the  over- 
balancing of  political  by  economic  interests, 
the  neglect  of  materials  for  defence,  and 
effeminacy  resulting  from  commercial 
prosperity,  have  also  con- 
Thc  Fall  tributed  to  their  destruction. 
of  Maritime  ^^^^^^^  combinations  of 
Nations  characteristics  arising  from 
the  geographical  positions  of  oceans, 
continents,  and  islands  are  connected 
with  the  broad  features  common  to 
oceanic  continuity.  These  characteristics 
are  reflected  from  the  sea  back  to  the 
land,  and  there  give  rise  to  historical 
groups.  The  historical  significance  of  such 
groups  is  expressed  in  their  names  even — 
RIediterranean  World,  Baltic  Nations, 
Atlantic  Powers,  and  Pacific  Sphere  of 
Civilisation.  They  are  primarily  the  results 
of  commerce  and  exchange,  and  of  the 
furthering,  correlating  influences  of  all 
coasts  and  islands.  When  they  united  all 
peninsulas,  islands,  and  coasts  of  the 
Mediterranean  into  one  state  the  Romans 
merely  set  a  political  crown  upon  the 
civiUsed  community  that  had  developed 
round  about,  and  by  means  of,  this  sea. 

And  if  we  wish  rightly  to  estimate 
the  significance  of  Roman  expansion  from 
a  Central  European  point  of  view,  we  may 
express  our  conception  very  shortly  — 
the  diffusion  of  Mediterranean  culture  over 
Western  and  Central  Europe.  It  was  at  the 
same  time  a  widening  of  the  horizon  of  a 
landlocked  sea  to  that  of  the  open  ocean. 
The  Atlantic  Ocean  succeeded  to  the 
Mediterranean  Sea.  The  Americans  and 
the  Russians,  and  the  Japanese,  repeating 
their  words,  maintain  that  in  the  same 
manner  the  Pacific  must  succeed  to  the 
Atlantic  ;  but  they  forget  the  peculiar 
features  of  the  Mediterranean,  especially 
its  conditions  of  area.  It  is  no  more  prob- 
.  able  that  such    a    compact, 

niqueness       isolated     development     will 

^,   ..,  occur   again    than   that  the 

Mediterranean,  .   ,  r    a  .  i  n 

history  oi  Athens  will  repeat 

itself  on  the  Korean  peninsula  or  at 
Shantung.  The  greater  the  ocean,  the 
farther  is  it  removed  from  the  isolated 
sea.  It  was  not  the  Atlantic  that 
succeeded  to  the  Mediterranean,  but  the 
broad  world-ocean  that  succeeded  to  the 
narrow  basin  called  the  Mediterranean  Sea. 
There  have  always  been  differences 
380 


between  the  various  divisions  of  the  main 
sea  ;  and  these  variations  will  ever  con- 
tinue to  be  prominent,  although  constantly 
tending  to  become  less  and  less  so. 

The  Pacific  will  always  remain  by  far  the 
greatest  ocean,  including,  as  it  does,  forty- 
five  per  cent,  of  the  total  area  of  water. 
Owing  to  its  great  breadth,  the  Pacific 
routes  are  from  three  to  four  times  as  long 
as  those  of  the  Atlantic.  The  Pacific 
widens  toward  the  south  ;  and  Australia 
and  Oceania  lie  in  the  opening,  thus 
furnishing  the  Pacific  with  its  most 
striking  peculiarity — a  third  continent 
situated  in  the  Southern  Hemisphere,  to- 
gether with  the  richest  series  of  island 
formations  on  earth.  Whatever  the  Pacific 
may  contribute  to  history,  it  will  be  a 
contribution  to  the  annals  of  the  Southern 
Hemisphere  ;  and  if  a  great  independent 
history  develop  in  the  antipodes,  it 
will  have  the  Southern  Pacific,  bounded 
by  Australia,  South  America,  New 
Zealand,  and  Oceania,  for  its  sphere 
of  action.  The  area  of  the  Atlantic 
Ocean  is  but  half  that  of  the  Pacific. 
Nor  is  it  for  this  reason  alone  that  in  com- 
parison  with  the  latter  it  is 

n  f  ^.*^.-.-  an  inland  rather  than  a  world 
Potentialities  r  •         .      •. 

f  th  P  'f  ^^^  '  '  owing  to  its  narrow- 
ness between  the  Old  and  the 
New  Worlds,  the  branches  it  puts  forth,  and 
the  islands  and  peninsulas  that  it  touches, 
it  shortens  the  routes  from  one  coast  to 
the  other.  In  it  there  is  more  of  a  merging 
of  land  and  sea  than  a  separation ;  and 
to-day  it  is  chiefly  a  European- American 
ocean.  The  Indian  Ocean  is  both  geo- 
graphically and  historically  but  half  an 
ocean.  Even  though  important  parts  of 
it  may  be  situated  north  of  the  equator, 
it  is  too  much  enclosed  to  the  north ; 
it  widens  to  the  south,  and  thus  belongs 
to  the  Southern  Hemisphere. 

The  great  oceans  open  up  broad  areas 
for  historical  movements,  and  through 
their  instrumentality  peoples  are  enabled 
to  spread  from  coast  to  coast  in  all  direc- 
tions ;  the  inland  seas,  on  the  contrary, 
cause  the  political  life  of  the  nations 
bordering  upon  them  to  be  concentrated 
within  a  limited  area.  The  Mediterranean 
will  ever  remain  a  focus  towards  which  the 
interests  of  almost  all  European  Powers 
concentrate.  It  has,  moreover,  become 
one  of  the  world's  highways  since  the 
completion  of  the  Suez  Canal.  The  Baltic 
somewhat  resembles  the  Mediterranean  , 
but  it  would  be  saying  too  much  to  look 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


The  Coast 
the  Threshold 
of  the  Land 


upon  its  position  as  other  than  subordinate 
to  that  of  the  greater  sea.  The  area  of  the 
Baltic  is  but  one-seventh  that  of  the 
Mediterranean  ;  and  it  is  lacking  in  the 
unique  intercontinental  situation  of  the 
latter.  In  many  respects  it  resembles  the 
Black  Sea  rather  than  the  Mediterranean, 
especially  by  reason  of  its  eastern  relations. 
Originally  the  coast  was  the 
threshold  of  the  sea  ;  but  as 
soon  as  maritime  races  deve- 
loped it  became  the  threshold 
of  the  land.  In  addition  it  is  a  margin,  a 
fringe  in  which  the  peculiarities  of  sea  and 
land  are  combined  ;  and  for  this  very  reason 
sea-coasts  have  a  historical  value  greatly 
disproportionate  to  their  area,  especially 
as  they  constitute  the  best  of  all  bound- 
aries for  the  nations  that  possess  them. 
Here  harbours  are  situated,  fortresses, 
and  the  most  densely  populated  of  cities. 
Owing  to  their  close  connection  with  the 
sea,  the  inhabitants  of  coasts  acquire 
characteristics  which  distinguish  them 
from  all  other  peoples.  Even  if  of  the  same 
nationality  as  their  inland  neighbours — 
as,  for  example,  the  Greeks  of  Thrace  and 
of  Asia  Minor  and  the  Malays  of  many  of 
the  East  Indian  islands — their  foreign 
traffic  nevertheless  impresses  certain  traits 
and  features  upon  them  which  in  the  case 
of  the  Low  Countries  led  almost  to  political 
disruption. 

A  coast  is  more  favoured  than  an 
interior  in  all  things  relating  to  commerce 
and  traffic  ;  yet  neither  may  enjoy  per- 
manent life  alone  without  the  other.  The 
French  departments  of  the  Weser  and  of 
the  Elbe  were  among  the  most  ephemeral 
of  the  political  results  achieved  by  the 
short-lived  Napoleonic  era.  With  the  sea 
at  their  backs  it  is  easy  for  the  inhabitants 
of  a  coast  to  become  detached  from  their 
nation,  and  but  a  simple  matter  for  them 
to  spread  over  other  coasts.  Ever  since 
the  time  of  the  Phoenicians  there  have 
been  numerous  colonists  of  coasts  and 
.  .  founders  of  coast  states.     The 

*V^^    1      Normans   are  most  typical    in 
and  Dead        t-  i,     .l  t-l 

^  European  history.     1  he  expan- 

sion of  coast  colonies  towards 
the  interior  is  one  of  the  most  striking 
features  of  recent  African  development. 
Thus  coasts  are  to  be  looked  at  from  within 
as  well  as  from  without.  To  many 
races — such  as  Hottentots  and  Austra- 
lians— the  coast  is  dead  compared  with 
the  interior  ;  for  Germany  the  coast  has 
been   politically   dead   for   centuries.      A 

382 


river-mouth  is  best  suited  to  carrying 
the  influences  of  the  coast  inland. 

All  ancient  historians  supposed  that 
the  Mediterranean  Sea,  with  its  many 
bays,  peninsulas,  and  islands,  schooled  the 
Phoenicians  in  seamanship.  This,  however, 
is  not  so.  Nautical  skill  is  transmitted  from 
one  people  to  another,  as  may  be  seen 
from  some  of  the  most  obvious  cases  in 
modern  history.  No  maritime  people  has 
become  great  through  its  own  coast  alone. 
It  is  not  the  coast  of  Maine,  with  its  numer- 
ous inlets  and  bays,  that  has  produced 
the  best  seamen,  but  the  coast  of 
Massachusetts,  naturally  unfavourable  for 
the  most  part ;  and  it  has  produced  the 
best  seamen  for  the  reason  that  the 
inland  districts  bounded  by  it  are  far  more 
productive  and  furthering  to  commerce 
than  are  the  interior  regions  of  Maine. 

Nature  has  forced  races  to  take  to  the 
sea  only  in  such  countries  as  Norway  and 
Greece,  where  the  strips  of  coast  are 
narrow  and  the  inland  territory  poor. 
In  order  to  have  political  influence  it  is 
sufficient  to  have  one  foot  on  the  sea- 
coast.  Aigues-Mortes,  with  its  swampy 
PI  environment,  was  sufficient  to 

The  Place  g^tend  France  to  the  Mediter- 
01  the  Coast  j      •  j.i,  jr 

.    „.  ranean    durmg    the   reign    of 

IS  ory  g^^  Louis  ;  Fiume  sufficed  for 
Hungary.  Forbidding  desert  coasts  have 
had  a  peculiarly  retarding  effect  on  his- 
torical development.  It  was  necessary  to 
rediscover  the  Australian  mainland,  to 
touch  at  more  favourable  points,  one 
hundred  and  thirty  years  after  the  time 
of  Tasman  ;  thus  the  history  of  the  settle- 
ment of  Australia  by  Europeans  originated, 
not  with  him,  but  with  Cook. 

As  portions  of  the  general  water  area, 
rivers  are  branches  or  runners  of  the 
sea,  extending  into  the  land — lymphatic 
vessels,  as  it  were,  bearing  nourishment  to 
the  ocean  from  the  higher  regions  of  the 
earth.  Therefore  they  form  the  natural 
routes  followed  by  historical  movements 
from  the  sea  inland  and  vice  versa.  A  solid 
foundation  of  truth  underlies  those  rivers 
of  legendary  geography  that  joined  one 
sea  with  another.  The  connection  of  the 
Baltic  and  the  Black  Sea  via  Kieff  is  not 
that  described  by  Adam  of  Bremen  ;  but 
Russian  canals  have  estabhshed  a  water- 
way, following  out  the  plan  indicated  by 
Nature,  just  as  the  Varangians  also  realised 
it  in  a  ruder  way  by  dragging  their 
boats  from  the  Dwina  to  the  Dnieper.  By 
uniting  the  Great  Lakes  to  the  Mississippi 


^^vo  h^^ 


■•<'O0.0()0  ** 


^  / 


THE    OCEANS    OF    THE    WORLD 
This  map,  on  a  projection  used  by  mariners,     ,  ^,  ^ 

shows     the    relative    sizes    of    the     great  ^    t' 

oceans,  viewed    from  above.       The  natural      ^  "7^  ^r  «. 

advantage    of   the    position  of   the    British       s        '<r  '•fj^  fl^cj^ 

Isles    for  communicating   with   the   oceans         \         *(9^    'C  oct^^r^ 
highways    is    clearly   seen,    and    the     vast  \  ■®<'0.s<,M«'**  " 

area  of  the  Pacific  is  strikingly  indicated.  \,^  ^ 


by  means  of  ihe  Illinois  River,  the  French 
provided  a  waterway  from  the  North 
Atlantic  Ocean  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  a 
line  of  power  in  the  rear  of  the  Atlantic 
colonies.  The  latter  fell  back  on  salt  water, 
the  former  on  fresh.  The  Nile,  flowing 
parallel  to  the  Red  Sea  from  Tanasee  in 
the  Abyssinian  highlands,  shares  with  the 
Red  Sea  even  to-day  in  the  traffic 
between  Eastern  and  East-central  Africa. 
The  railway  from  Mombasa  to  Uganda 
completes  a  western  Mediterranean-Indian 
line  of  connection,  as  a  road  along  the 


Euphrates  to  the  Persian  Gulf  would 
an  eastern,  each  following  the  direction 
of  rivers  running  parallel  to  the  Red  Sea. 
We  can  clearly  see  the  transition  of  the 
functions  of  oceans  to  fresh,  shallow  water, 
to  sounds  and  lagoons,  in  which  sea  traffic 
is  furnished  with  smoother,  quieter  routes 
under  the  shelter  of  the  coasts. 

In  truth,  only  portions  of  the  lines  of 
traffic  follow  rivers  ;  for  rivers  flow  from 
highland  to  lowland,  watersheds  breaking 
their  course  here  and  there.  In  comparison 
with  the  oceans,  rivers  are  but  shallow 

383 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


channels,  the  continuity  of  which  may  be 
broken  by  every  rocky  ledge.  Thus  different 
regions  for  traffic  arise  at  various  points 
in  the  same  stream.  Only  that  part  of 
Egypt  which  is  situated  north  of  the  first 
cataract  is  Egypt  proper  ;  the  territory 
to  the  south  was  conquered  from  Nubia. 
The  farther  we  travel  up  a  stream  the  less 
water  and  the  more  rapids  and  falls  we 
shall  find  ;  therefore  traffic  also  decreases 
in  the  direction  toward  the  river's  source. 
It  may  be  seen  from  this  that  there  is  but 
little       proba-  __  „ 

biUty  of  truth    [ 
in  the  analogy   i 
drawn  between   : 
the  flowing   of   ; 
rivers  from 
elevations     to 
plains     and 
the  migrations 
of  nations  and 
directions      in 
which      states 
expand.     His- 
tory shows 
that  migration 
and     develop- 
ment follow   a 
direction    con- 
trary from  that 
in  which  rivers 
flow. 

Maritime  and 
terrestrial  ad- 
vantages arc 
concentra- 
ted where  ;i 
river  joins  the 
sea ;  esj)ecJall\- 
charactei- 
istic  of  sucli 
districts  arc 
deltas,  at  an 
early  date 
rendered  more 
efficient  for 
purposes  of 
commerce 
through  canals  and  dredging.  The  fertihty 
of  the  alluvial  soil,  the  lack  of  forest 
occasioned  by  frequent  floods,  and  the 
protection  afforded  by  the  islands  of  the 
delta,  may  have  had  not  a  little  in- 
fluence on  the  choice  of  such  regions  as 
settlements  for  man.  At  all  events, 
estuaries  and  deltas,  both  small  and  great, 
were  in  the  earliest  times  centres  of  civilisa- 
tio.i.     Egypt  and  Babylonia  both  testify 

384 


THE    ORIGIN    OF    SEAFARING    PEOPLES 
It  is  not  sufficient  to  have  a  favourable  sea-coast  in  order  to  breed  a  race  of 
sea-going  people.     The  land  behind  the  coast-line  must  be  fertile  and  produc- 
tive, else  no  inducement  exists  for  seafaring.      This  condition  is  everywhere 
present  along  the  British  shores,  of  which  this  is  a  typical  coasting  scene. 


to  this  ;  the  colonising  Greeks  also  showed 
a  preference  for  river  mouths.  Miletus, 
Ephesus  and  Rome  were  states  situated 
at  the  mouths  of  rivers,  and  so  were 
the  ancient  settlements  on  the  Rhone,  the 
Guadalquivir,  and  the  Indus.  It  would 
not  be  possible,  however,  to  deduce  from 
this  proofs  of  a  potamic  phase  of  civihsa- 
tion  and  formation  of  nations  preceding 
the  Thalassic,  or  Mediterranean.  Estuary 
and  delta  states  are  far  more  a  result  of 
the  Mediterranean  culture.    The  latter  led 

to   the    settle- 
__,,         .  „  - -^  ^^^^^  ^^ favour- 

'  able  districts 
;  on  various 
coasts,  all  of 
I  which  were 
finally  swal- 
lowed up"  into 
the  Roman 
Empire  during 
the  period  of 
its  northern 
and  eastern 
expansion. 

Another 
much  more 
evident  process 
of  development 
through  the 
instrumen- 
tality  of  rivers 
was  shown  at 
the  time  when 
traffic  began  to 
extend  itself 
o  \'  e  r  wide 
areas.  Rivers 
are  the  natural 
liighways  in 
countries 
which  abound 
in  water,  and 
are  of  so  much 
the  greater 
importance  be- 
cause in  such 
lands  other 
thoroughfares  are  frequently  wanting. 
Taken  collectively,  rivers  form  a  natural 
circulatory  system.  In  America  at  the 
time  of  the  exploration  and  conquest,  in 
Siberia,  in  Africa  to-day,  they  are  natural 
arteries  by  means  of  which  exchange  and 
political  power  may  be  extended.  The 
more  accessible  a  river  is  to  commerce,  the 
more  rapidly  political  occupation  increases 
about  its  basin,  as  has  been  shown  by  the 


THE    JUNCTIONS    OF    GREAT    RIVERS    ARE    LANDMARKS    OF    HISTORY 
Where  two  rivers  join,  two  lines  of  political  tendencies  always  meet,  and  their  junction  is  the  point  whence  political  forces 
must  be  controlled.  This  is  the  significance  of  the  situations  of  Mainz  (i  at  top),  Khartoum  (i),  Lyons  (3),  and  Belgrade  (4) 

Photos  '   Frilh  and  }'liotochi  ome 

^5  3'^5 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


Varangians  in  Russia  and  the  Portuguese 
in  Brazil.  The  best  example  of  a  country 
having  developed  through  conformity  with 
a  natural  river  system  and  in  connection 
with  it  is  that  of  the  Congo  State,   with 

part  of  its  boundaries  drawn 
ivers  as  simply  along  the  lines  of  water- 
ig  y'^y*  °  c;]^g(^s  Mastery  among  rival 
Development       ,  j    ^  •       j  ?       iu 

colonies  is  determined  by  the 

results  of  the  struggle  for  the  possession  of 
rivers ;  this  has  been  as  clearly  shown  by 
the  St.  Lawrence  and  the  Mississippi  in 
America,  as  by  the  Niger  and  the  Benuwe 
in  Africa.  The  influence  of  riverways  in 
furthering  the  path  of  political  develop- 
ment may  be  best  seen  in  the  contrast 
between  South  America  and  Africa  ;  the 
colonising  movement  came  to  the  latter 
more  than  300  years  later  than  to  the 
former  continent. 

Every  river  is  a  route  followed  by 
political  power,  and  is  therefore  at  the 
same  time  a  point  of  attraction  and 
line  of  direction.  The  Germans  have 
pushed  their  way  along  the  Elbe  between 
the  Danes  and  the  Slavs,  and  along  the 
Vistula  between  the  Slavs  and  the  Lithu- 
anians or  old  Prussians.  The  river  that 
supports  an  embryonic  nation  holds  it 
together  when  developed.  The  influence  of 
the  Mississippi  was  directed  against  the 
outbreak  of  the  Civil  War  in  America.  As 
pearls  are  strung  along  a  cord,  so  the  pro- 
vinces of  new  and  old  Egypt  are  connected 
liy  the  Nile.  Austria-Hungary  is  not  the 
Danube  nation  only  because  the  river  was 
the  life  nerve  of  its  development,  but  also 
because  eighty-two  per  cent,  of  Austro- 
Hungarian  territory  is  included  within 
the  regions  drained  by  it.  When  the 
natural  connection  of  rivers  is  broken  then 
this  power  of  cohesion  ceases.  The  political 
and  economic  disunion  of  the  Rhine,  the 
Main,  and  other  German  rivers  preceded 
the  dissolution  of  the  German  Empire. 

Where  two  rivers  join  there  is  always  a 

meeting    of    two    lines    of    political    ten- 

dencies,  and  the  place  of  their 

-''^  ^     ^      junction    is    the  point  whence 

-  p*^  the  political  forces  must  be  con- 

trolled and  held  together.  This 
is  the  significance  of  the  situations  of 
Mainz,  Lyons,  Belgrade,  St.  Louis,  and 
Khartoum.  The  course  followed  by  flow- 
ing water  is  far  less  direct  than  that  of 
historical  movements  ;   the  latter  take  the 


shortest  way,  and  do  not  continue  along 
the  stream  where  a  loop  is  formed  ;  or 
they  may  follow  a  tributary  that  runs  on 
in  the  original  direction  of  the  main  stream, 
as  in  the  case  of  the  very  ancient  highway 
along  the  Oder  and  the  Neisse  to  Bohemia. 
The  sides  of  sharp  angles  formed  by  a 
river  in  its  course  lead  to  a  salient  point  as, 
Regensburg  and  Orleans.  A  tributary 
meeting  the  main  stream  at  this  point 
forms  the  best  route  to  a  neighbouring 
river,  or  the  angle  may  become  a  penin- 
sula, so  bounded  by  a  tributary  stream  at 
its  base  as  almost  to  take  the  form  of  an 
island. 

Breaks  in  the  continuity  of  the  land 
occasioned  by  rivers  are  caused  rather  by 
the  channel  in  which  the  water  flows  than 
by  the  river  itself.  Thus  we  often  find 
that  dry  river-beds  are  effective  agents  of 
this  dividing  up  of  the  land.  Permanent 
inequalities  of  the  earth's  surface  are  in- 
tensified by  flowing  water.  Therefore  a  river 
system  separates  the  land  into  natural 
divisions.  These  narrow  clefts  are  ever 
willingly  adopted  as  boundary  lines, 
especially  in  cases  where  it  is 

*^Jf f*. ,        necessary  to  set  general  limits 
as  Dividers    ,  ^        •        j.        .t^  t-u 

-  to  an  extensive  territory,    1  hus 

Charles  the  Great  bounded  his 
empire  by  the  Eider,  Elbe,  Raab,  and 
Ebro.  Smaller  divisions  of  land  are  formed 
by  the  convergence  of  tributaries  and  main 
streams,  and  again  still  smaller  portions 
are  created  by  the  joining  together  of  the 
lesser  branches  of  tributaries,  these  taking 
an  especially  important  place  in  the 
history  of  wars  :  for  example,  those  formed 
by  the  Rhine,  Weser,  Elbe,  and  Oder,  and 
on  a  lesser  scale  by  the  Moselle,  Seille, 
and  Saar.  Fords  are  always  important ; 
in  Africa  they  have  even  been  points  at 
which  small  states  have  begun  to  develop. 
Rivers  as  highways  in  time  of  war  no 
longer  have  the  value  once  attributed  to 
them  by  Frederick  the  Great,  who  called 
the  Oder  "  the  nurse  of  the  army."  Yet 
rivers  were  of  such  great  moment  in  this 
respect  in  the  roadless  interior  of  America 
during  the  Civil  War  that  the  getting  of 
information  as  to  water-levels  was  one  of 
the  most  important  tasks  of  the  army 
intelligence  department.  Rivers  will  always 
remain  superior  to  railways  as  lines  of  com- 
munication during  time  of  war,  at  least  in 
one  respect,  for  they  cannot  be  destroyed. 


386 


THEMAKING 

OF  THE 
NATIONS-m 


r^V,  :^\ 


Professor 

FREDERICK 

RATZEL 


THE    INFLUENCE    OF    ENVIRONMENT    IN    THE 
LIFE    OF   NATIONS 


I  TPON  the  earth,  with  its  varied  con- 
^  figuration  and  formation  of  land  and 
sea,  are  many  kinds  of  hindrances  and 
Hmits  to  hfc. 

The  most  obvious  effect  of  natural 
region  and  natural  boundary  lies  in  the 
counteracting  forces  opposed  by  the 
earth  through  them  to  a  formless  and 
unlimited  diffusion  of  life.  Isolated  terri- 
tory furthers  political  independence,  which, 
indeed,  is  of  itself  isolation.  The  develop- 
ment of  a  nation  upon  a  fixed  territory 
consists  in  a  striving  to  make  use  of  all 
the  natural  advantages  of  that  territory. 
The  superiority  of  a  naturally  isolated 
region  lies  in  the  fact  that  seclusion  itself 
brings  with  it  the  greatest  of  all  advan- 
tages. Hence  the  precocious  economic 
and  political  development  of  races  that 
dwell  on  islands  or  on  peninsulas,  in  moun- 
tain valleys  and  on  island-like  deltas. 

Often  enough  gx'owth  that  originates 
under  such  favourable  conditions  leads  to 
ruin.  A  young  nation  deems 
itself  possessed  of  all  so  long 
as  it  has  the  isolation  that 
ensures  independence  ;  it 
sees  too  late  that  the  latter  has  been  pur- 
chased at  the  price  of  a  suffocating  lack  of 
space  ;  and  it  dies  of  a  hypertrophy  of 
development — a  death  common  to  minor 
states.  This  was  the  cause  of  the  swift  rise 
and  decline  of  Athens  and  of  Venice,  and 
of  all  powers  that  restricted  themselves 
to  islands  and  to  narrow  strips  of  coast. 

The  more  natural  boundaries  a  state 
possesses,  the  more  definite  are  the 
poHtical  questions  raised  by  its  develop- 
ment. The  consohdation  of  England, 
Scotland,  and  Wales  was  simjile  and 
obvious,  as  patent  as  if  it  had  been  decreed 
beforehand,  as  was  also  the  expansion  of 
France  over  the  region  that  lies  between 
the  Alps  and  the  Pyrenees,  the  Mediter- 
ranean and  the  Atlantic  Ocean.  On  the 
other  hand,  what  a  fumbling,  groping 
development  was  that  of  Germany,  with 
her  lack  of  natural  boundary  in  the  east  ! 
Thus  in  the  great  geographical  features 
of    lands    lie    pre-ordained    movements, 


The  Rise  and 
Death  of 
Isolated  States 


constrained  by  the  highest  necessity — a 
higher  necessity  in  the  case  of  some  than 
of  others.  The  frontier  of  the  Pyrenees 
was  more  necessary  to  France  than  that 
of  the  Rhine  ;  an  advance  to  the  Indian 
Ocean  is  more  necessary  to  Russia  than  a 
movement  into  Central  Europe, 
a  ura          Growth    is    soundest    when    a 

Boundaries      .     ,  ,  .       r-n  , 

.     „  state  expands  so  as  to  fill  out 

a  naturally  bounded  region — 
as,  for  example,  the  United  States,  that 
symmetrically  occupy  the  southern  half 
of  the  continent  of  North  America,  or 
Switzerland,  extending  to  the  Rhme  and 
Lake  of  Constance.  There  are  often  ad- 
justments of  frontiers  which  force  the 
territory  of  a  nation  back  into  a  natural 
region,  as  shown  in  the  case  of  Chili, 
which  gave  up  the  attempt  to  extend  its 
boundaries  beyond  the  Andes,  in  spite  of 
its  having  authorisation  to  do  so,  founded 
on  the  right  of  discovery,  the  original 
Spanish  division  of  provinces,  and  wars  of 
independence.  A  favourable  external  form 
is  often  coincident  with  a  favourable 
internal  configuration  which  is  quite  as 
furthering  to  internal  continuity  as  is  the 
external  form  to  isolated  development. 
The  Roman  Empire,  externally  uniform 
as  an  empire  of  Mediterranean  states,  was 
particularly  qualified  for  holding  fast  to  its 
most  distant  provinces,  by  reason  of  the 
Mediterranean  Sea  that  occupied  its  very 
centre.  Everything  that  furthers  traffic  is 
also  favourable  to  cohesion.  Hence  the  sig- 
nificance of  waterways  for  ancient  states, 
and  of  canals  and  railways  for  modern 
nations.  Egypt  was  the  empire  of  the 
Nile,  and  the  Rhine  was  at  one  time  the 
life-vein  of  the  empire  of  Charles  the  Great. 

A  state  does  not  always 
A  State  must  remain  fixed  *in  the  same 
Forsake  .ts  „^^^„,.^^i  :^^^  However  ad- 
Boundaries  ^  ^u  u 

vantageous    they   may   have 

been,  it  must, on  increasing,  forsake  the  best 
of  boundaries.  Since  one  region  is  exchanged 
for  another,  the  law  of  increasing  areas 
comes  into  force.  Every  land,  sea,  river 
region,  or  valley  should  always  be  conceived 
of  as  an  area    that  must  be  discovered, 

Z^7 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


inhabited,  and  politically  realised  before  it 
may  exert  any  influence  beyond  its  limits. 
Thus  the  Mediterranean  district  had  first 
to  complete  its  internal  development 
before  it  could  produce  any  external  effect. 
This  internal  development  first  took 
possession  of  the  small  territories,  and, 
mastering  them,  turned  to  the  greater. 
Thus  we  may  see  history  pro- 
gress from  clearings  in  forests, 
oases,  islands,  small  peninsulas, 
such  as  Greece  ;  and  strips  of 
coast,  to  great  peninsulas,  such  as  Italy ; 
isthmian  situations  of  continental  size, 
such  as  Gaul  ;  only  to  come  to  a  halt  in 
half  continents  such  as  the  United  States 
and  Canada,  and  continents.  Europe — 
next  to  the  smallest  continent — has  had 
the  richest  history  of  all,  but  with  the 
greatest  breaking  up  of  its  area  into  small 


First 

Continent 

State 


geography,  it  is  by  no  means  to  be  neglected 
by  those  who  are  interested  in  history, 
boundary  questions  being  among  the  most 
frequent  causes  of  wars.  In  addition, 
boundaries  are  the  necessary  result  of 
historical  movements.  In  case  two  states 
strive  against  each  other  in  expanding, 
the  motion  of  both  is  impeded,  and  the 
boundary  lies  where  the  movement  comes 
to  a  halt.  It  is  in  the  nature  of  things 
that  growing  states  are  very  frequently 
contiguous  to  uninhabited  regions,  not  to 
other  states.  This  contiguity  is  always 
a  source  of  natural  boundaries.  The  most 
natural  of  all  arise  from  adjacency  to  un- 
inhabitable regions  :  first  the  uninhabitable 
lands,  then  the  sea.  The  boundary  at  the 
edge  of  the  uninhabitable  world  is  the 
safest  ;  for  there  is  nothing  beyond.  The 
broad    Arctic  frontiers    of    Russia    are    a 


THE    HOTTEST    PLACE    IN    THE    WORLD     IS     INHABITED    BY    MAN 
No  climate  has  triumphed  over  the  endurance  of  man.     Massowah,   the  most  important  town  in  the  Italian  Colony 
of  Eritrea,  in  North  Africa,  is  the  hottest  place  in  the  world,  but,  like  the  coldest  known  place,   it  is  inhabitecf. 


divisions ;  Australia,  the  smallest  continent, 
is  the  earliest  to  unite  its  parts  into  a 
continental  state.  Development  expends 
all  its  power  in  bringing  the  areas  of  the 
three  greatest  land-divisions  into  play, 
and  in  opposing  their  one  hundred  and 
five  million  square  miles  to  the  ten  and 
a  half  million  of  the  smaller  divisions  ; 
their  economic  action  is  already  felt  to  a 
considerable  degree.  Thus  there  arises 
an  alternation  of  isolation  and  expansion, 
which  was  clearly  shown  in  the  history  of 
Rome,  whose  territory  grew  from  the  single 
city,  out  over  the  valley  of  the  Tiber,  into 
Apennine  Italy,  into  the  peninsula,  across 
the  islands  and  peninsulas  of  the  Medi- 
terranean, and  finally  into  the  two  adja- 
cent continents. 

The  boundaries  of  natural  regions  are 
always  natural  boundaries.  Although 
this  delicate  subject  may  l:e  left  to  political 

388 


great  source  of  power.  A  high  mountain 
range,  also,  may  separate  inhabited  re- 
gions— which  are  always  State  territory — 
by  an  uninhabited  strip  of  land.  After 
all,  the  sea,  marshes,  rivers  even,  are 
uninhabitable  zones.  But  trafiic  brings 
connection  with  it,  and  the  Rhine,  which 
to  the  Romans  was  a  moat,  especially  well 
adapted  as  a  defence,  is  now, 

'I'L^^.-  1  with  its  thirty  railway  bridges 
and  National  j  ^.u  j        r  i        i 

_      .  and  thousands  of  vessels  ply- 

mg  up  and  down  and  across, 
far  more  of  a  highway  and  a  means  of 
communication  than  a  dividing  line. 

The  position,  form,  and  movements  of 
the  earth  seem  far  enough  removed  from 
the  deeds  and  destinies  of  peoples,  yet  the 
more  we  contemplate  the  latter,  the  more 
we  are  led  to  consider  the  earth's  inclina- 
tion to  its  axis,  its  approximately  spherical 
form,  and  its  motion,  which,   combined, 


HOW  NATIONS  ARE   AFFECTED   BY   THEIR  ENVIRONMENT 


INHABITANTS    OF    THE    COLDEST    PLACE    IN    THE    WORLD 
Man  is  the  most  adaptable  ot  living  creatures.     There  is  no  climate  in  the  world  in  which  he  cannot  live.      The  lowest 
temperatures  taken  have  been  at  Verkhoyansk,  in  Siberia,  but  the  place  is  inhabited  by  people,  of  wbopi  we  give  a  group. 


are  the  cause  of  the  recurrence  in  fixed 
order  of  day  and  night,  summer  and  winter. 
.  The  effects  of  these  great  earthly 
phenomena  are  differently  felt  in  every 
country ;  for  they  vary  according  to 
geographical  location.  Practically,  that 
which  most  conforms  to  any  given  situa- 
tion north  or  south  of  the  equator  is  the 
climate  of  a  land.  Day  and  night  are  of 
more  even  length  at  the  equator  than  in 
our  country  ;  but  beyond  the  Polar  circles 
there  are  days  that  last  for  months,  and 
nights  equally  long.  Scarcely  any  annual 
variation  in  temperature  is  known  to  the 
inhabitants  of  Java,  while  in  Eastern 
Siberia  Januarys  of  fifty  degrees  below 
freezing-point  and  Julys  of  twenty  de- 
grees above  zero    of   Centigrade,  winters 


during  which  the  mercury  freezes,  and 
summers  of  oppressive  sultriness,  are  con- 
trasted with  one  another. 

In  our  temperate  region  there  is  rain,  as  a 
rule,  during  all  months,  but  as  far  north 
as  Italy  and  Greece  the  year  is  divided 
into  a  dry  and  a  wet  season.  Great  effects 
are  produced  over  the  entire  earth 
and  upon  all  living  creatures  by  the 
thus  conditioned  climatic  differences. 
They  must  be  considered  at  the  very 
beginning  of  every  investigation  into 
history.  Since  we  know  that  a  fluctua- 
ting distribution  of  heat  is  caused  by 
the  23i°  inclination  of  the  earth's 
axis,  investigation  also  leads  us  to  a 
knowledge  of  further  phenomena,  to  a 
consideration   of   the   dependence   of   the 


mmur 


MANS    TRIUMPH     OVER    CLIMATE  :      THE    COLDEST    PLACE    IN    THE    WORLD 
Just  as  man  has  estabhshed  himself  in  the  torrid  heat  of  Massowah,  so  he  can  endure  the  highest  degree  of  cold. 
The  coldest  place  in  the  world,  Verkhoyansk,  of  which  this  is  a  photograph,  is  the  capital  of  a  Siberian  province. 


389 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


The  First 
Question  about 
a  Country 


winds   and   of  the   precipitation   of  heat 
upon  this  very  same  condition. 

And  thus  we  come  into  contact  with  the 
thousand  connecting  threads  by  which 
man's  economic  activity,  health,  distri- 
bution over  the  earth,  even  his  spiritual 
and  his  political  hfe,  are  inseparably 
bound  up  with  the  chmate.  Hence  the 
first  question  that  should  be 
asked  concerning  a  country 
is  :  What  is  its  geographical 
situation  ?  A  land  may  be 
interesting  for  many  other  reasons  besides 
nearness  or  remoteness  from  the  equator  ; 
but  that  which  is  of  the  greatest  interest 
of  aU  to  the  historian  is  a  consideration 
of  the  manifold  and  far-reaching  effects 
of  climate. 

The  study  of  human  geography  teaches 
us  that  climate  affects  mankind  in  two 
ways.  First,  it  produces  a  direct  effect 
upon  individuals,  races,  indeed  the  inhabi- 
tants of  entire  zones,  influencing  their 
bodily  conditions,  their  characters,  and 
their  minds  ;  in  the  second  place,  it  pro- 
duces an  indirect  effect  by  its  influence  on 
conditions  necessary  to  life.  This  is  due 
to  the  fact,  that  the  plants  and  animals 
with  which  man  stands  in  so  varied  a 
relationship,  which  supply  him  with 
nourishment,  clothing,  and  shelter,  which, 
when  domesticated  and  cultivated,  enter 
his  service,  as  it  were,  and  become  most 
valuable  and  influential  assistants  and 
instruments  for  his  development  and  cul- 
ture, are  also  dependent  upon  climate. 
Important  properties  of  the  soil,  the 
existence  of  plains,  deserts,  and  forests, 
also  depend  upon  climate.  Effects  of 
chmate,  both  direct  and  indirect,  are 
united  in  pohtical-geographical  pheno- 
mena, and  are  especially  manifest  in  the 
growth  of  states  and  in  their  permanence 
and  strength. 

There  is  no  climate  that  cannot  be 
borne  by  man  ;  of  all  organic  beings  he  is 
one  of  the  most  capable  of  adapting  him- 
self to  circumstances.  Men 
J*'"'  *"*"  dwell  even  in  the  very  coldest 
zi^!^^  *  regions.  The  place  where  the 
ima  es  jQ^ygg^.  temperatures  have  been 
measured,  Verkhoyansk,  with  a  mean 
January  temperature  of  -  54°  F.,  is  the 
capital  of  a  Siberian  province  ;  and  a  dis- 
trict where  the  temperature  is  of  the  very 
hottest,  Massowah,  is  the  most  important 
town  in  the  Italian  colony  of  Eritrea. 

However,  both  heat  and  cold,  when  ex- 
cessive, tend  to  lessen  population,  the  size 

390 


of  settlements,  arid  economic  activity. 
The  great  issues  of  the  world's  history 
have  been  decided  on  ground  situated 
between  the  tropic  of  Cancer  and  the  Polar 
circle.  The  question  as  to  whether  the 
northern  half  of  North  America  should  be 
English  or  French  was  decided  between  the 
parallels  of  44°  and  48°  north  latitude  ; 
and  in  the  same  manner  the  settlement  as 
to  whether  Sweden  or  Russia  should  be 
supreme  in  Northern  Europe  took  place 
a  httle  south  of  60°  north.  Holland  did 
not  lose  and  regain  her  Indian  possessions 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  equator,  but 
in  Europe  ;  and  Spain  fell  from  the  high 
estate  of  sovereign  over  South  and  Central 
America  because  her  power  as  a  European 
nation  had  decayed. 

The  coldest  countries  in  the  world  are 
either  entirely  uninhabited — as  Spitz- 
bergen  and  Franz  Josef's  Land — or  very 
thinly  populated.  Some  are  politically 
without  a  master — the  two  territories  just 
mentioned,  for  example  ;  some  are  politic- 
ally occupied,  as  is  Greenland,  but  are  of 
very  little  value.  History  teaches  that 
traffic  between  such  colonies  and  the 
mother  country  may  cease 
Strange        entirely    without    the    mother 


Divergence 
of  a  Race 


country  suffering  any  loss  there- 
by. The  hottest  regions  in  the 
world  are  for  the  most  part  colonies  or 
dependencies  of  European  Powers.  This 
applies  to  the  whole  of  tropical  Africa, 
Asia,  Australia,  and  Oceania,  and  partly 
to  tropical  America. 

The  exclusion  of  European  nations  from 
grasping  for  possessions  in  America  was 
not  determined  upon  in  the  compromised 
territory  of  tropical  America,  but  in  the 
United  States,  a  short  distance  south  of 
39°  north  latitude.  What  a  difference  in 
the  parts  played  in  history  by  the  two 
branches  of  the  Tunguse  race,  the  one  held 
in  subjection  in  the  cold  latitude  of  Russia, 
the  other  conquering  China,  and  now  the 
sovereign  power  in  the  more  temperate 
climate  of  that  country  ;  or  between  the 
Turks  who,  as  Yakuts,  lead  a  nomadic  hfe  in 
the  Lena  valley,  and  the  Turks  who  govern 
Western  Asia  !  Latham  called  the  region 
extending  from  the  Elbe  to  the  Amoor — 
within  which  dwell  Germans,  Sarmatians, 
Ugrian  Finns,  Turks,  Mongolians,  and 
Manchurians,  peoples  who  strike  with  a 
two-edged  sword — a  "  Zone  of  Conquest." 
Farther  to  the  north  nations  are  poor  and 
weak  ;  toward  the  equator,  luxurious  and 
enervated.     The  inhabitants  of  this  central 


HOW  NATIONS  ARE  AFFECTED  BY  THEIR  ENVIRONMENT 


zone  have  over-run  their  neighbours  both 
to  the  north  and  to  the  south,  while  never, 
either  from  the  north  or  from  the  south, 
have  they  themselves  suffered  any  lasting 
injury.  The  Germans  have  advanced  from 
the  Baltic  Sea  to  the  Mediterranean  ;  the 
Slavs  inhabit  a  territory  that  extends 
from  the  Arctic  Ocean  to  the  Adriatic  Sea ; 
the  Turks  and  Mongolians  have  penetrated 
as  far  south  as  India  ;  and  there  have  been 
times  when  Mongolians  ruled  from  the 
Arctic  Ocean  to  Southern  India.  Finally, 
the  Manchurians  have  extended  their 
sphere  of  influence  over  Northern  Asia  as 
far  south  as  the  tropic  of  Cancer. 

These  differences  occur  over  again  in 
more  restricted  areas,  even  within  the 
temperate  zone  itself.  The  inhabitants  of 
the  colder  portions  of  a  country  have  often 
shown  their  superiority  to  the  men  who 
dwell  in  the  warmer  districts.  The  causes 
of  the  contrast  between  the  Northerners 
and  the  Southerners,  which  has  dominated 
in  the  development  of  the  United  States, 
may  for  the  most  part  be  clearly  traced  : 
the  South  was  weakened  by  the  plantation 


EFFECT  OF  CLIMATE  ON  THE  COURSE  OF   HISTORY 
A  map  on  which  the  isothermal  lines  are  drawn  is  rich  in  historical 
instruction.       Where    th?   lines    diverge   we    have   regions   of  equal 
temperature ;   where  they  crowd  together,  districts  of  different  mean 


method  of  cultivation,  and  slavery  ;  its 
white  population  increased  slowly,  and 
shared  to  a  lesser  degree  than  did  the 
Northerners  in  the  strengthening,  edu- 
cating influences  of  agriculture  and  manu- 
facturing industries.  Thus  after  a  long 
struggle  that  finally  developed  into  a  war, 
the  North  won  the  place  of  authority. 

In  Italy  and  in  France  the  superiority 
of   the   north  over  the  south  is  partially 
comprehensible  ;  and  in  Germany  the  ad- 
vantages possessed  by  Prussia, 

Sunbeams       ^^  j^^^  -^  ^^^^  ^^^  -^^  ^^^  ^^^^^^ 

and  Ra.nfall  ^j.g  obvious.  But  when  in 
in  History  ^^^^^^^  history  also  the  north  is 
found  to  have  been  victorious  over  the 
south,  conditions  other  than  climatic 
must  have  been  the  cause.  In  this  case 
elements  have  been  present  that  are  more 
deeply-rooted  than  in  sunbeams  and 
rainfall  alone. 

We  must  call  to  mind  the  zone-like 
territories  of  early  times,  occupied  by 
peoples  from  which  the  nations  of  to  day 
are  descended  ;  the  boundary  lines  have 
disappeared,  but  the  northern  elements 
have  remained  in  the  north,  and 
the  southern  elements  in  the  south. 
It  is  well  known  that  Aristotle 
adjudged  political  superiority  and 
the  sphere  of  world-empire  to  the 
Hellenes  because  they  surpassed 
the  courageous  tribes  of  the  north 
in  intelligence  and  in  mechanical 
instinct,  and  were  superior  to  the 
both  intelligent  and  skilful  inhabi- 
tants of  Asia  in  courage.  "  As  the 
Hellenic  race  occupies  a  central 
geographical  position,  so  does  it 
stand  between  both  intellectually." 
The  thought  that  this  union  of 
extreme  intellectuality  and  power 
in  arms  on  Hellenic  soil  could  be 
the  result  of  ethnical  infiltration 
did  not  seem  to  have  occurred  to 
the  philosopher.  The  fundamental 
idea  of  Aristotle,  the  aristocratic 
state,  in  which  the  talented  Hellene 
alone  was  to  rule  o\er  bondmen 
of  various  origins,  who  were,  above 
all,  to  labour  for  him,  could  not 
have  been  possible  had  his  views 
been  othersvise.  And  yet  he 
had  clearly  seen  that  the  two 
talents — for  war  and  for  industry — 
were  unequally  distributed  among 
the  different  Hellenic  stocks,  and 
that     they     were     also    variable 


annual  temperatures  lie"  close  together.    The    crowding  of  climatic    ^rrQrAvnp  +0  time, 
variations  in  any  region  enlivens  and  hastens  tbe  course  of  history.    d.ci-uiuiiig  tw  miic. 


391 


lie  close  to  one  another.  The 
crowding  of  climatic  variations  in 
any  region  enlivens  and  hastens  the 
course  of  history  in  that  region.  If 
the  variations  occur  only  at  long 
intervals,  all  parts  of  a  large  territory 
having  approximately  equal  mean 
annual  temperatures,  then  climatic 
contrasts,  which  act  as  a  ferment,  as 
it  were,  are  not  present  to  any 
appreciable  extent,  and  their  effects 
lose  in  intensity  and  are  dispelled. 
Where  are  greater  combinations 
of  contrasting  climatic  elements  to 
be  found  than  in  Greece  and  in  the 
Alps  ?  The  joining  together  of  the 
natives  of  rich,  fruitful  Zurich  with 
the  poor  shepherds  of  the  forests 
and  mountains  was  of  the  utmost 
importance  to  the  develoi)ment  of 
HOW  THE   SAME   PEOPLES   DIFFER  ^j^^  g^^j^^    Confederation.      It   was 

The  Yakuts,  who  lead  a  nomad  life  in  the  valley  of  the  Lena,  and  the    „i^„  „„„;„„  „f    r-ncrir^T,o  r^f   rnJIrl    ■^■r.A 
Turks  who  govern  Western  Asia,  are  of  the  same  stock,  but  the  genial     aiSO  a  UUlOn  OI    I  CglOUS  OI    milQ    aUQ 

cold  temperatures.     The  possession 
of    Central    European    and   Medi- 


) govern 

climate  has  enabled  the  Turks  to  flourish  while  the  cold  has  kept  the 
Yakuts  poor.      These  groups  represent  both  branches  of  the  stock 


Considering  the  influence  even  of  slighter 
differences  in  climate,  the  locations  of 
regions  of  similar  mean  annual  tempera- 
ture, and  the  distances  which  separate 
them  from  one  another,  cannot  be  other- 
wise than  important.  A  map  on  which 
the  isothermal  lines  are  drawn  is  rich  in 
historical  instruction.  Where  the  lines 
diverge  we  have  regions  of  equal  tempera- 
ture ;  where  they  crowd  together,  districts 
of    different    mean    annual    temperatures 

392 


terranean  climates,  that  shade  into 
one  another  without  any  sharp  line 
of  demarcation,  is  a  great  advantage  to 
France.  If  climatic  differences  approach 
one  another  in  too  great  a  contrast,  clefts 
in  development  are  likely  to  occur,  such 
as  the  gap  between  the  Northern  and  the 
Southern  States  in  America,  and  that 
between  North  and  South  Queensland. 
If  it  be  possible  to  adjust  the  political 
differences,   then   the   union   of  areas  of 


HOW    NATIONS    ARE    AFFECTED    BY    THEIR    ENVIRONMENT 


different  temperatures  has  an  in- 
vigorating effect,  as  shown  by  the 
history  of  the  American  Southern 
States  since  1865. 

Winds  blowing  in  a  constant 
direction  for  many  months  at  a 
time  were  of  great  assistance  to 
navigation  during  the  days  of 
saihng  vessels,  which,  indeed,  have 
not  yet  been  entirely  supplanted 
by  steamships.  Before  the  time 
of  steam  vessels  all  traffic  on  the 
Indian  Ocean  was  closely  con- 
nected with  the  change  of  the 
monsoons  ;  and  important  political 
expansions  have  followed  in  the 
track  of  the  same  winds — for  ex- 
ample, the  diffusion  of  the  Arabs  ^ 
along  the  east  coast  of  Africa  and   f^ 


THE    EFFECTS    OF    CLIMATE    ON    THE    POWER    OF    PEOPLES 
There  is  a  world  of  difference  between  the  two  branches  of  the  Tungnse  race  :  the  one  is  a  poor  people  living  in  cold 
regions  and  subject  to  Russia  ;  the  other  is  the  ruling  race  of  the  Chinese  Empire,  flourishing  in  a  temperate  climate. 
The  upper  group  is  composed  of  ruling  Tunguses  in  China  and  the  lower  group  represents  Tunguses  subject  to  Russia. 


in  Madagascar.  The  influence  of  the  trade 
winds  on  the  Spanish  and  Portuguese  dis- 
coveries along  the  Atlantic  coast  of  America 
is  well  known.  The  south-eastern  trade 
winds  have  been  a  cause  of  both  voluntary 
and  involuntary  emigrations  of  Polynesian 
races.  It  may  be  clearly  seen  from  the 
history  of  Greece  what  advantage  was  ob- 
tained by  the  race  that  won  the  alliance  of 
the  coast  of  Thrace  and  the  wind  that  blows 
south  from  it  with  constancy  during  the 
entire  fair  season,  often  eight  months  long. 


Where  the  wind  is  most  variable,  visiting 
entire  countries  with  storms,  to  the  great 
destruction  of  lives  and  property,  the 
result  is  a  stirring  up  of  the  survivors  to 
exertions  that  cannot  fail  to  be  strengthen- 
ing both  to  body  and  to  mind,  and  of  direct 
benefit  to  life  in  general.  At  the  same 
time  that  the  people  of  Holland  were 
engaged  in  forcing  back  the  ocean,  they 
won  their  political  liberty.  In  another 
part  of  the  North  Sea  coast  the  Frisians 
receded  farther  and  farther  south,  owing 

393 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


One  of 

the  Greatest 

Problems 


to  the  invasions  of  the  sea  and  the  attacks 
of  the  natives  of  Holstein.  The  tempest 
that  scattered  the  armada  of  Phihp  II. 
was  one  of  the  most  important  pohtical 
events  of  the  time  ;  and  it  is  not  to  be 
denied  that  the  snowstorm  in  Prussian 
Eylau,  at  the  beginning  of  the  battle  in 
which  Napoleon  suffered  his  first  defeat, 
contributed  not  a  little  to  the  result. 

Acclimatisation  is  one  of  the  greatest  of 
human  problems.  In  order  that  a  nation 
shall  expand  from  one  zone 
into  another,  it  must  be 
capable  of  adapting  itself 
to  new  climates.  The 
human  race  is,  as  a  whole,  one  of  the 
most  adaptable  of  all  animal  species  to 
different  conditions  of  life ;  it  is  diffused 
through  all  zones  and  all  altitudes  up  to 
about  thirteen  thousand  feet  above  the 
level  of  the  sea.  But  single  nations  are 
accustomed  to  fixed  zones  and  portions 
of  zones  ;  and  long  residence  in  foreign 
climates  leads  to  illness  and  loss  of  life. 

In  some  races  the  individuals  are  of  a 
more  rigid  constitution  than  in  others, 
and  are  thus  less  capable  of  adaptation. 
Chinamen  and  Jews  adapt  themselves  to 
different  climates  far  more  easily  than  do 
Germans,  upon  whom  residence  in  the 
southern  part  of  Spain  even,  and  to  a  still 
greater  degree  in  Northern  Africa,  is 
followed  by  injurious  effects.  The  constant 
outbreaks  of  destructive  disease  before 
which  the  German  troops  withered  away 
are  to  be  counted  amongst  the  greatest 
obstacles  opposed  to  the  absorption  of 
Italy  into  the  German  Empire.  During 
the  Spanish  discoveries  and  conquests  in 
America  in  the  sixteenth  century,  whole 
armies  wasted  away  to  mere  handfuls. 
The  greatest  hindrances  to  German 
colonisation  in  Venezuela  are  climatic 
diseases.  Medical  science  has,  to  be  sure, 
pointed  out  such  deleterious  influences  as 
may  be  traced  to  unsuitable  dwelling- 
places,  nutrition,  clothing,  etc.  ;  and  the 
losses  to  Europe  of  soldiers  and 
officials  in  the  tropics  have  been 
wni-Power  ^''eatly  reduced.  But  even 
to-day  deaths,  illnesses,  and 
furloughs  make  up  the  chief  items  in  the 
reports  sent  in  from  every  colony  in  the 
tro{)ics.  British  India  can  only  be  governed 
from  the  hills,  where  the  officials  dwell 
during  the  greater  part  of  the  year. 

Climatic  influence  is  not  limited  to 
bodily  diseases.  One  of  the  first  effects 
of  life  in  warm  climates  upon  men  accus- 

394 


Climate 
and 


tomed  to  cold  regions  is  relaxation  of 
what  is  known  as  will-power.  Even  the 
Piedmontese  soldier  loses  his  erect  car- 
riage in  a  Neapolitan  or  Sicilian  garrison. 
Englishmen  in  India  count  on  an  ability 
to  perform  only  half  the  amount  of  work 
they  would  be  capable  of  at  home.  Many 
inhabitants  of  northern  countries  escape 
the  bodily  diseases  of  the  tropics  ;  but 
scarcely  one  man  of  an  entire  nation  is 
able  to  resist  the  more  subtle  alterations 
in  spirit. 

Their  historical  influence  extends  only 
the  deeper  for  it.  The  conquering  nations 
that  advance  from  north  to  south  have 
invariably  forfeited  their  power,  deter- 
mination, and  activity.  The  original 
character  of  the  Aryans  who  descended 
into  the  lowlands  of  India  has  been  lost. 
A  foreign  spirit  rings  through  the  Vedic 
hymns.  West  Goths  and  Vandals  alike 
lost  their  nationalities  in  Northern  Africa 
and  Spain,  as  the  Lombards  lost  theirs 
in  Italy.  In  spite  of  all  emigration, 
immigration,  and  wandering  hither  and 
thither,  there  always  remains  a  certain 
fixed  difference  between  the  inhabitants 
of  colder  and  those  of  warmer 


The  Peoples 
of  North 


countries  ;  it  is  the  nature  of 
'"g""       the  land,   moulding  the  more 

ductile  character  of  a  people 
into  its  own  form.  There  are  differences 
also  between  the  northern  and  the 
southern  stocks  of  the  same  race,  and 
thus  climate  exerts  here  greater  and  there 
lesser  influence  upon  nations  and  their 
destinies. 

Since  it  lies  in  the  nature  of  climatic 
influences  to  produce  homogeneity  among 
those  peoples  who  inhabit  extensive  regions 
of  similar  mean  annual  terrfperatures,  it 
follows  that  a  unifying  effect  is  also  pro- 
duced on  political  divisions  that  might 
otherwise  be  inclined  to  separate  from 
one  another.  In  the  first  place,  a  similar 
climate  creates  similar  conditions  of  life, 
and  thus  the  northern  and  southern  races 
of  each  hemisphere,  with  their  temj:)erate 
and  their  hot  climates,  differ  widely. 
Climate  is  also  the  cause  of  similar  con- 
ditions of  production  over  large  terri- 
tories. Leroy-Beaulieu  rightly  mentioned 
climate — above  all,  the  winter,  during 
which  almost  every  year  the  whole  land 
from  north  to  south  is  covered  with  snow 
— as  next  in  importance  to  the  configura- 
tion of  the  country  in  its  unifying,  cohesive 
effects  on  the  Russian  Empire.  Winters 
are  not  rare  during  which  it  is  possible 


A  STORM  THAT  CHANGED  THE  COURSE   OF   HISTORY  :    THE  WRECK   OF  THE   ARMADA 
The  weather  has  g^reatly  influenced  the  course  of  history  and  helped  to  mould  the  fate  of  nations.     The  tempest 
that  scattered  the   Spanish  Armada   in   1588  was  one  of  the  most  important  political  events  of  the  time.     This 
picture,  from  the  painting  by  J.  W.  Carey,  illustrates  the  wreck  of  the  galleon  "  Girona,"  at  Giant's  Causeway. 


to  journey  from  A.strachan  to  Archangel 
in  sledges  ;  and  both  the  Sea  of  Azov 
and  the  northern  part  of  the  Caspian  Sea 
are  frozen  over  during  the  cold  months, 
as  well  as  the  Bay  of  Finland,  the  Dnieper 
as  well  as  the  Dwina. 

Situation  determines  the  affinities  and 
relations  of  peoples  and  states,  and  is 
for  this  reason  the  most  important  of 
all  geographical  considerations.  Situation 
is  always  the  first  thing  to  be  investi- 
gated ;  it  is  the  frame  by  which  all  other 
characteristics  are  encircled.  Of  what 
use  were  descriptions  of  the  influence  of 
the  geographical  configuration  of  Greece 
on  Grecian  history,  in  which  the  decisive 
point  that  Greece  occupies  a  medial 
position  between  Europe  and  Asia,  and 
between  Europe  and  Africa,  was  not 
insisted  upon  above  all  ?  Everything  else 
is  subordinate  to  the  fact  that  Greece 
stands  upon  the  threshold  of  the  Orient. 
However  varied  and  rich  its  development 
may  have  been,  it  must  always  have  been 
determined  by  conditions  arising  from 
its  contiguity  with  the  lands  of  Western 
Asia  and  Northern  Africa.  Area  in  par- 
ticular, often  over-valued,  must  be  sub- 
ordinated to  location.  The  site  may  be 
only  a  point,  but  from  this  point  the  most 


powerful  effects  may  be  radiated  in  all 
directions.  Who  thinks  of  area  when 
Jerusalem,  Athens,  or  Gibraltar  is  men- 
tioned ?  When  it  is  found  that  the  Fanning 
Islands  or  Palmyra  Island  is  indispensable 
to  the  carrying  out  of  England's  plans  in 
respect  to  telegraphic  connection  of  all 
parts  of  the  empire  with  one  another, 
merely  because  these  islands  are  adapted 
for  cable  stations  on  the  line  between 
Queensland  and  \'ancouvcr.  is  it  not  owing 
to  their  location  alone,  without  con- 
sideration as  to  area,  conliguration,  or 
climate  ? 

Every  portion  of  the  earth  lends  its 
own  peculiar  qualities  to  the  nations  and 
races  that  dwell  upon  it,  and  so  does  each 
of  its  subdivisions  in  turn.  Germany,  as 
a  iirst-class  Power,  is  thinkable  only  in 
Europe.  There  cannot  be  either  a  New 
York  or  a  St.  Petersburg  in  Africa.  Our 
organic  conception  of  nations  and  states 
renders  it  impossible  for  us  to  look  upon 
situation  'as  something  lifeless  and  pas- 
sive ;  far  rather  must  it  signify  active 
relations  of  giving  and  receiving.  Two 
states  cannot  exist  side  by  side  without 
influencing  each  other.  It  is  much  more 
likclv  that  such  close  relationships  result 
froni  their  contiguity  ;    that,  for  example, 

395 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


we  must  conceive  of  China,  Korea,  and 
Japan  as  divisions  of  a  single  sphere  of 
civihsation,  their  history  consisting  in  a 
transference,  transplanting,  action,  and 
reaction,  leading  to  results  of  the  greatest 
moment.  Some  situations  are,  indeed, 
more  independent  and  isolated  than  others ; 
but  what  would  be  the  history  of  England, 
the  most  isolated  country  in  Europe,  if 
all  relations  with  France,  Germany,  the 
Netherlands,  and  Scandinavia  were 
omitted  ?  It  would  be  incomprehensible. 
The  more  self-dependent  a  situation  is, 
the  more  is  it  a  natural  location  ;  the 
more  dependent,  the  more  artificial,  and 
the  more  it  is  a  part  of  a  neighbourhood. 
Connection  with  a  hemisphere  or  grand 
division,  identity  with  a  peninsula  or  archi- 
pelago, location  with  respect  to  oceans, 
seas,  rivers,  deserts,  and  mountains,  deter- 
mine the  histories  of  countries.  It  is 
precisely  in  the  natural  locality  that  we 
must    recognise    the    strongest   bonds    of 


dependence  on  Nature.  Apart  from  all 
other  features  peculiar  to  Italy,  her 
central  position  in  the  Mediterranean 
alone  determines  her  existence  as  a 
Mediterranean  Power.  However  highly 
we  may  value  the  good  qualities  of  the 
German  people,  the  best  of  these  quali- 
ties will  never  reach  so  high  a  develop- 
ment in  the  constrained,  wedged-in, 
continental  situation  of  their  native  land 
as  they  would  in  an  island  nation  ;  for. 
Germany's  location  is  more  that  of  a 
state  in  a  neighbourhood  of  states  than 
a  natural  location,  and  for  this  reason 
more  unfavourable  than  that  of  France. 

Natural  locahties  of  the  greatest  im- 
portance result  from  the  configuration 
and  situation  of  divisions  of  the  earth's 
surface.  The  extremities  of  continents — 
such  as  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  Cape 
Horn,  Singapore,  Ceylon,  Tasmania,  and 
Key  West — are  points  from  which  sea 
power  radiates  ;    and  at   the  same  time 


^X"       /  :-^^   f^^^^-l       !  NOBTH  £  acYJ    W  I  N  OS  '^  g 

4" 


Pcfuxtiutt  W'lndsll^lonioon.sjshoiyn  l/iiis- -■— ■ 

PitvLuliiKj  S  Conslant  Wtnds  Jihot*nlhus ^:^ 


Outward  Vovaije  of  Columbus  shown  thus -^<- 

Uomeward  \'o\aqe  of  Columbus  shotvn  thus    — ••'L.-.r 

POLITICAL    EXPANSION     HAS     FOLLOWED     IN    THE    TRACK    OF    THE    WINDS 
This  map  illustrating  the  trade  winds  and  prevailing  winds  shows  how  important  were  these  winds  before  the  days  of 
steam  vessels.     It   shows   that   the  outward   voyage   of  Columbus   was   entirely   along   the   track  of  the   north-east 
trade  winds.     Where  the  arrows  cross,  as  off  the  North-west  of  Scotland,  we  have  regions  of  wind  disturbances. 


396 


■^»»u 


SOUTH 
AMERICA 


THE    RIVERS    OF    TWO    CONTINENTS    AND    THEIR    INFLUENCE     IN    CIVILISATION 
The  influence  of  riverways  in  furthering  political   development  may  be  best  seen  in  the  contrast  between   South 
America  and  Africa  ;  the  colonising  movement  came  to  Africa  three  hundred  years  later  than  to  South  America. 

40  30  20  10  0  10  20  30  40  SO  60 


EUROPEAN    COUNTRIES    AND    THEIR    NEARNESS    TO    THE    SEA 
A  country's  prosperity  depends  greatly  upon  its  relation  to  the  sea.     This  map  shows  the  boundaries  of  European 
countries;   and  the   black    lines    indicate    those    countries    that    lie    withm    150    and    500    miles    from   the   sea-coast 

THE  RELATION   OF   RIVERS  AND   THE  SEA   TO   THE   CIVILISATION   OF   COUNTRIES 

397 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


they  are  the  summits  of  triangular 
territories  that  extend  inland  and  are 
governed  from  the  apex.  In  the  same  way 
all  narrowings  of  parts  of  continents  are  of 
importance.  France  occupies  an  isthmian 
position  between  ocean  and  sea ;  Ger- 
many and  Austria  between  the  North  Sea, 
the  Baltic,  and  the  Adriatic.  Some  states 
are  situated  on  the  coast,  occu- 
The  Ideal  pying  a  bordering  position ; 
Situation  Q^^gj-g  occupy  an  intermediate 
for  a  btatc  Iq^^^^qj^  ^^^^  the  more  isolated 
situations  are  all  fundamentally  different, 
according  to  whether  they  are  insular, 
peninsular,  or  continental.  Situations  in 
respect  to  the  oceans  are  even  more 
various.  How  different  are  Atlantic 
locations  in  Europe  from  those  on  the 
Mediterranean,  the  Baltic,  or  the  Black 
Sea  !  Only  a  few  nations  occupy  a  position 
fronting  on  two  great  oceans.  The  ideal 
natural  situation  for  a  state  may  be  said  to 
be  the  embracing  of  a  whole  continent 
within  one  political  system.  This  is  the 
deeper  source  of  the  Monroe  Doctrine. 

Similar  locations  give  rise  to  similar 
political  models.  Since  there  are  several 
types  of  location,  it  follows  that  the 
histories  of  such  locations  assume  typical 
characters.  The  contrast  between  Rome 
and  Carthage,  their  association  with  each 
other,  exhibiting  the  reciprocal  action  of 
the  characters  of  the  northern  and  southern 
Mediterranean  coasts,  is  repeated  in 
similarly  formed  situations  in  Spain  and 
Morocco,  in  Thrace  and  Asia  INIinor,  and 
on  a  smaller  scale  in  the  Italian  and 
Barbary  ports.  In  all  these  places 
events  similar  to  those  in  Roman  and 
Punic  history  have  taken  place.  Japan 
and  England  are  unlike  in  many  respects ; 
yet  not  only  the  peoples,  but  also  the 
political  systems,  of  the  two  island  nations 
have  insular  characteristics.  Germany 
and  Bornu  are  as  different  from  each 
other  as  Europe  is  from  Africa,  but  cen- 
tral location  has  produced 
the  same  i:)eculiarity  in  each — 


Contrasts 
and 


-,  .  a  source  of  power  to  the  strong 

Comparisons         ,.  r        •       x       ^u  i 

nation,  of  rum   to   the  weak. 

Contiguity  with  neighbouring  states 
brings  with  it  important  relationships. 
The  most  striking  examples  of  such  con- 
tiguity are  to  be  seen  in  nations  that  are 
cut  of^  from  the  coast  of  their  continent  and 
completely  surrounded  by  other  countries. 
Owing  to  the  constant  reaching  out  for 
more  territory,  such  a  situation  in  Europe, 
as  weU  as   in   other  continents,  signifies 

398 


unconditional  loss  of  independence.  Only 
connection  with  a  great  river  can  prevent 
the  dissolution  of  a  nation  so  situated. 
The  instinctive  impulse  to  extend  its 
boundaries  to  the  sea,  shown  by  all 
nations,  arises  from  the  desire  to  escape 
an  insulated  continental  position.  Only 
the  very  smallest  of  states,  such  as 
Andorra  and  Liechtenstein — which,  more- 
over, do  not  aspire  to  absolute  inde- 
pendence— could  have  existed  for  centuries 
in  the  positions  that  they  occupy.  A 
medial  situation  held  by  one  country 
between  two  others  is  also,  in  point  of 
risk,  comparable  to  a  completely  encom- 
passed position.  France  was  so  situated 
when  Germany  and  Spain  were  under  the 
same  ruler.  The  alliance  of  two  neigh- 
bouring lands  may  place  a  third  state  in 
a  similar  position. 

Whatever  the  individual  locations  of 
neighbouring  states  may  be,  their  number 
is  a  matter  of  great  importance.  It  is 
better  to  have  a  multitude  of  weak  neigh- 
bours than  a  few  strong  ones.  The 
development  of  the  United  States  that 
gradually  ousted  France  from  the  south, 
.         Mexico    from    the    west,    and 

^,  .  *^  Spain  from  both  south  and 
National  ^     ,      •  j        i      1        •.         i, 

„  „     west,  m  order  to  be  m  touch 

with  the  sea  on  three  sides,  has, 
with  the  decrease  in  neighbouring  Powers, 
resulted  in  an  enviable  simplification  of 
political  problems. 

A  nation  covering  various  dispersed 
and  scattered  situations  is  to  be  seen  at 
the  present  day  only  in  regions  of  active 
colonisation  and  in  the  interiors  of  federal 
states.  Powerful  nations  are  consolidated 
into  a  single  territory.  We  may  see  every- 
where that  when  the  area  of  distribution 
of  a  form  of  life  diminishes  in  extent, 
it  does  not  simply  shrink  uj),  but  trans- 
forms itself  into  a  number  of  island-like 
sites,  giving  the  appearance  that  the  form, 
of  life  is  proceeding  from  a  centre  of  the 
conquest  of  new  territory.  In  what  does 
the  difference  lie  between  islands  of  pro- 
gress and  of  recession  ?  With  nations  and 
states  progress  lies  in  the  occupation  of 
the  most  advantageous  sites  ;  retrogres- 
sion lies  in  their  loss  and  sacrifice.  The 
American  Indians,  forced  back  from 
oceans,  rivers,  and  fertile  regions,  form 
detached  groups  of  retrogression ;  the 
Europeans  who  took  these  sites  from 
them  formed  isles  of  progress  as,  one  after 
another,  they  seized  the  islands,  promon- 
tories, harbours,  river-mouths,  and  passes. 


THE  MAKING 

OF    THE 
NATIONS-IV 


Professor 

FREDERICK 

RATZEL 


THE    SIZE    AND    POWER    OF    NATIONS 


IT  is  not  without  reason  that  so  much 
importance  is  attached  to  extent  of 
surface  in  geography.  Area  and  popula- 
tion represent  to  us  the  two  chief  charac- 
teristics of  a  state  ;  and  to  know  them  is 
the  simplest  means — often  too  simple — for 
obtaining  a  conception  of  the  size  and 
power  of  a  nation.  We  cannot  conceive  of 
any  man,  much  less  a  human 
^.  **  community,  without  thinking 
***    *.f  of  surface   or  ground    at    the 

Territory  ,•  t?  ix-      i 

same  time.  Political  science 
may,  through  a  number  of  clever  con- 
clusions, reduce  the  area  of  a  state  to  a 
mere  national  possession ;  but  we  all 
know  that  territory  is  too  tightly  bound 
up  with  the  very  life  of  a  state  for  it  to 
assume  a  position  of  so  little  importance. 
In  a  nation,  people  and  soil  are  organic- 
ally united  into  one,  and  area  and 
population  are  the  measure  of  this  union. 
A  state  cannot  exchange  or  al  er  its 
area  without  suffering  a  complete  trans- 
formation itself.  What  wonder,  then, 
that  wars  between  nations  are  struggles 
for  territory  ?  Even  in  war  the  object  is 
to  limit  the  opponent's  sphere  of  action  ; 
how  much  more  does  the  whole  history  of 
nations  consist  in  a  winning  and  losing  of 
territory.  The  Poles  still  exist  as  they  did 
in  former  times  ;  but  the  ground  upon 
which  they  dwell  has  ceased  to  belong  to 
them  in  a  political  sense,  and  thus  their 
state  has  been  annihilated. 

During  the  course  of  history  we  con- 
stantly see  great  political  areas  emerging 
from  th  '  struggle  for  territory.  We  see 
nations  from  early  times  to  the  present 
day  increasing  in  area  :  the  Persian  and 
Roman  Empires  were  small  and 
mean  compared  with  those  of 
the  Russians,  English,  and 
Chinese.  Also  the  states  of 
peoples  of  a  lower  grade  of  culture  are 
insignificant  compared  with  the  states  of 
more  advanced  races.  The  greatest  empires 
of  the  present  day  are  the  youngest ;  the 
smallest  —  Andorra,  Liechtenstein,  San 
Marino,  Monaco,  appear  to  us  only  as 
venerable,    strange   petrifications    of    an 


The  Vast 

Modern 

Empires 


alien  time.  The  relation  of  surface  to  the 
growth  of  spheres  of  commerce  and  of 
means  of  communication  is  obvious.  Com- 
munication is  a  struggle  with  area  ;  and  the 
result  of  this  struggle  is  the  overcoming  of 
the  latter.  The  process  is  complicated 
because,  as  control  is  gained  over  area,  one 
also  acquires  possession  of  its  contents  : 
advantages  of  location,  conformation, 
fertility,  and,  by  no  means  least,  the 
inhabitants  of  the  territory  themselves. 
But  the  loss  in  value  of  all  these  things, 
brought  about  by  their  being  widely 
scattered  throughout  an  extensive  area, 
can  be  overcome  only  by  a  complete  con- 
trol of  the  region  over  which  they  are 
spread. 

The  development  of  commerce  is  the 
preliminary  history  of  political  growth. 
This  applies  to  all  races,  from  Phoenicians 
to  North  Americans,  who  point  out  to 
us  a  post  of  the  American  Fur  Company 
as  the  germ  from  which  Nebraska  de- 
veloped. Every  colony  is  a  result  of 
traffic ;  even  in  the  case  of 
Siberia,  merchants  from 
Euro})ean  Russia  travelled 
thither  as  far  as  the  Ob  about 
three  centuries  before  its  conquest.  The 
phrase  "  conquests  of  the  world's  com- 
merce "  is  perfectly  legitimate.  The  build- 
ing of  roads  is  a  part  of  the  glory  of  the 
founders  and  rulers  of  nations.  To-day, 
tariff  unions  and  railway  politics  have  taken 
the  place  of  road-making.  It  has  always 
been  so ;  both  state  and  traffic  have  had 
the  same  interest  in  roads  and  thorough- 
fares. Traffic  breaks  the  way,  and  the 
state  improves  and  completes  it.  It  seems 
to  be  certain  that  the  firmly  organised 
state  in  ancient  Peru  opened  the  roads 
which  were  later  a  service  to  traffic.  In 
a  lower  ]:»hase  of  development  we  may 
see  commerce  leading  directly  to  the 
establishment  of  states  ;  in  a  higher,  to 
victory  in  war,  arising  from  commercial 
and  railway  communication.  It  would  be 
impossible  for  France  to  construct  the 
Sahara  Railway  without  first  subjugating 
the    Tuareg    and    seizing    their    country. 

399 


Traffic 
Leads  to 
Empire 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


/ 


Highways  of  traffic  as  weapons  for  hostile 
states,  the  important  part  played  by  com- 
mercial nations  and  the  culture  of  strictly 
industrial  and  commercial  peoples,  the 
endeavour  of  traffic  to  be  of  service  to  the 
pohcies  of  states,  and,  finally,  the  power- 
ful reactions  caused  by  the  removal  and 
disuse  of  thoroughfares  of  commerce  to 
races,  nations,  and  to  entire  spheres  of 
civilisation — can  only  be  indicated  here. 

Every  political  movement,  whether  it 
be  a  warlike  expedition  or  a  peaceful 
emigration,  is  preceded  by  movements 
which  are  not  political.  Inquiries  must 
be  made  and  relations  instituted  ;  the 
object  must  be  determined,  and  the  road 
explored.  All  the  while  that  knowledge 
of  the  world  beyond  the  bounds  of  a 
country  is  being  gained,  there  is  also  an 
imperceptible  broadening  of  the  geo- 
graphical horizon  ;  and  this  not  only  widens 
out,  but  becomes  clearer.  Fabulous  tales 
are  circulated  as  to  the  terrors  of  strange 
countries  ;  but  the  fear  gradually  vanishes 
as  our  knowledge  increases,  and  with  the 
latter  a  spirit  of  p)olitical  enterprise  awakens 
One  can  say  that  every  trader  who  passes 

the  bounds   of  his    country 
Every  Trader     ^^^^^     ^-^     ^^^^^     ^-^^    ^-^ 

in  his  load  of  merchandise. 
To  be  sure,  there  are  both 
long  preparations  made  and  quick  leaps 
taken  in  the  processes  of  commerce. 
Roman  merchants  prepared  the  way  to  a 
knowledge  of  Gaul  and  its  conquest.  But 
how  different  the  attitude  of  the  Romans 
to  Gaul  before  and  after  the  time  of 
Cassar  !  What  a  difference  in  the  Spanish 
estimate  of  the  worth  of  American  colonies 
before  the  days  o  Cortez  and  Pizarro,  and 
afterward  !  The  broader  and  clearer  the 
geographical  horizon  grows,  the  greater 
become  political  schemes  and  standards  of 
polcy. 

The  widening  of  the  geographical  horizon 
and  the  clearmg  up  of  mysteries  beyond 
are  invariably  a  result  of  the  travels  of 
individuals  or  of  groups  for  peaceful  pur- 
poses. The  first  of  these  purposes  is  com- 
merce ;  the  chase  and  fishing  are  also  to 
be  taken  into  consideration ;  and  the 
involuntary  wanderings  of  the  lost  and 
strayed  are  not  to  be  excluded.  Europe 
possessed  a  Pytheas  and  a  Columbus  who 
discovered  new  worlds  ;  and  every  primi- 
tive comumnity  had  its  explorers,  too,  who 
cleared  paths  from  one  forest  glade  to 
another.  If  such  pioneers  return,  they  also 
bring  back   with   them  contributions   to 

400 


Bears  his 
State  with  him 


the  general  stock  of  knowledge  of  the  world 
without,  and  it  becomes  less  difficult  for 
others  to  follow  in  their  footsteps ; 
finally  armies  or  fleets  may  advance, 
conquering  in  their  tracks.  Whenever 
traffic  makes  busy  a  multitude  of  men, 
and  employs  extensive  means  by  which  to 
carry  on  its  operations,  the  truth  of  the 
sa5dng,  "  The  flag  follows 
Causes  of  trade,"    is    finally    estab- 

National  Success  1-  1     j  •     •.     1  j      - 

.  P  ..  lished  m  its  broadest  sense. 

With  all  this  struggling  and 
labouring,  territory  does  not  fall  to  the 
state  simply  as  a  definite  number  of  square 
miles.  Just  as  single  individuals  bring 
enlightenment  to  the  state,  in  the  same 
manner  the  idea  of  area  arises  in  the 
intelligence  of  the  aggregate. 

When  we  say  that  an  area  increases,  we 
must  remember  that  by  this  we  mean  that 
the  intelligence  which  views  it  and  the 
will  that  holds  it  together  have  increased, 
and  naturally,  also,  that  which  is  re- 
quisite for  rendering  intelligence  and  will 
capable  for  their  work.  In  this  lies  one  of 
the  greatest  differences  that  exist  between 
nations,  one  of  the  greatest  causes  of  suc- 
cess and  failure  in  development. 

A  disposition  for  expansion  that  ad- 
vances boundaries  to  the  farthest  possible 
limit  is  a  sign  of  the  highest  state  of 
civilisation.  It  is  a  result  of  an  increase 
both  of  population  and  of  intellectual 
progress. 

There  is  something  very  attractive  in 
the  small  political  models  of  early  times  : 
those  city-states  whose  development  had 
in  definiteness  and  in  precision  a  great 
deal  of  the  lucidity  and  compactness  of 
artistic  compositions.  Liibeck  and  Venice 
are  more  attractive  than  Russia.  The 
concentration  of  the  forces  of  a  small 
community  in  a  limited,  beautifully  situ- 
ated, and  protected  location,  is  a  source 
of  a  development  that  takes  a  deeper 
hold  on  all  the  vital  powers  of  a  people, 
employing  them  more  extensively,  and 
therefore  ending  in  a  more 
Small  States   ^.^p-^  ^^^  definite  perfection 

of     historical     individuality. 

Thus  small  areas  take  the 
lead  of  large  territories  in  historical 
development ;  and  we  may  see  many 
examples  of  a  slow  but  sure  trans- 
ference of  leadership  from  the  small 
area  to  the  large,  and  of  the  gradual 
diffusion  of  progress  in  the  latter.  Thus 
Italy  followed  Greece  ;  Spain,  Portugal ; 
England,  Holland. 


in  Fine 
Situations 


401 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


The  opposite  of  this  is  precocity  in 
growth  :  the  earher  a  state  marks  out 
its  hmits  without  consideration  for  later 
expansion,  the  sooner  the  completion  of 
its  development.  The  growth  in  area  of 
Venice  and  the  Low  Countries  stood 
still,  while  all  about  them  territories  in- 
creased in  size.  The  development  of  small 
countries  flags  unless  the  increase  of  popu- 
lation within  a  limited  area  leads  to  that 
disquiet  and  emigration  and  expulsion 
of  citizens  especially  characteristic  of 
small  nations  :  the  horizon  grows  too 
narrow  for  the  times  ;  patriotism  becomes 
local  pride ;  and  the  most  important 
Hfe  forces  are  impaired.  Thus  minor 
nations,  through  which  races  are  separated 
into  httle  groups,  develop  :  the  great 
national  economic  and  religious  cohesive 
forces  are  broken  up ;  and  even  the 
political  advantages  of  the  ground  are 
reduced  in  value  through  disintegration. 

Under  such  conditions  the  impulse  for 
new  growth  must  be  brought  in  from 
without.  The  native,  who  is  acquainted 
with  only  one  home,  is  always  inferior  to 
the  foreigner,  who  has  a  knowledge  of  two 
lands  at  least.  It  is  remark- 
Founding      ^^y^    j^^^^   numerous    are    the 

Stran  crs  traditions  of  the  establishment 
rangers  ^^  states  by  strangers.  Some- 
times these  are  mighty  hunters,  as  in 
Africa  ;  often  they  are  superior  bearers  of 
civilisation,  as  in  Peru  ;  and  an  especially 
large  number  of  them  have  descended  to 
the  earth  from  heaven.  In  the  face  of 
history  which  tells  of  the  foundation  of 
a  Manchurian  dynasty  in  China  and  a 
Turkish  in  Persia,  of  the  establishment  of 
the  Russian  Empire  by  wandering  North 
Germans,  and  that  of  the  great  nations  in 
the  West  Sudan  by  the  Fulah  shepherds 
— these  mythical  accounts,  although  they 
may  appear  decidedly  incredible  when 
taken  singly,  as  a  whole  are  probable 
enough.  The  foundation  of  the  nation  of 
Sarav/ak  in  Borneo  by  Brooke  is  reality 
and  corresponds  with  many  of  the  old 
legends  of  the  formations  of  states. 

The  broad  conception  of  a  state,  which 
acts  as  a  ferment  does  on  a  disrupted 
mass,  is  introduced  from  one  neighbouring 
nation  into  another,  each  sharing  in  its 
production.  When  such  territories  are 
adjacent,  the  state  situated  in  the  most 
powerful  natural  region  overgrows  the 
other.  The  more  mobile  race  brings  its 
influence  to  bear  on  the  less  mobile,  and 
possibly  draws  the  other  along  with  it, 

402 


The  more  compact,  better  organised  and 
armed  state  intrudes  on  weaker  nations, 
and  forces  its  organisation  upon  them. 
A  nation  left  to  itself  has  a  tendency  to 
split  up  into  small  groups,  each  of  which 
seeks  to  support  its  own  life  upon  its  own 
soil,  heedless  of  the  others  ;  and  as  such 
groups  increase,  they  always  reproduce  in 
their  own  images  :  families 
A  Great  ^  families,  and  tribes  tribes. 
Turn.ng-pomt  ^^.^  ^^^  ^^^  ^^^^^  ^^  measures 
m  IS  ory  taken  by  some  nations  to  limit 
an  increase  in  growth  that  would  carry 
them  beyond  their  old  boundaries  and 
place  them  under  new  conditions  of  life. 
Many  an  otherwise  inexplicable  custom 
of  taking  human  life  is  a  result  of  this 
tendency;  perhaps,  in  some  cases,  even 
cannibalism  itself.  This  impulse  towards 
limitation  would  have  rendered  the  growth 
of  nations  impossible  had  not  the  anti- 
thetical force  of  attraction  of  one  t6  another 
led  to  growth  and  amalgamation.  Truly, 
the  advance  from  a  condition  of  isolated, 
self-dependent  communities  to  one  of  traffic 
between  state  organisms,  which  must  of 
necessity  lead  to  ebb  and  flow  and  union 
of  one  group  with  another,  is  one  of  the 
greatest  turning-points  in  the  history  of 
man. 

Since  the  tendency  has  been  for  terri- 
tory to  become  the  exclusive  reward  of 
victory  in  the  competition  of  nations, 
balance  of  territorial  possessions  has  grown 
to  be  one  of  the  chief  ends  of  national 
policies.  The  phrase  "  balance  of  power," 
which  has  been  so  often  heard  since  the 
sixteenth  century,  is  no  invention  of 
diplomats,  but  a  necessary  result  of  the 
struggle  for  expansion.  Hence  we  find 
an  active  principle  of  territorial  adjust- 
ment and  balance  in  all  matters  con- 
cerning international  politics.  It  is  not 
yet  active  in  the  small  and  simple 
states  of  semi-civilised  peoples ;  such 
states  are  much  more  uniform,  for  they 
have  all  originated  with  a  uniformly  weak 
capacity  for  controlling  terri- 
tory. In  addition,  the  principle 
ff  .  of  territorial  isolation  hinders 

eig  ours  ^^^  action  of  political  com- 
petition. As  soon,  however,  as  necessity 
for  increased  area  leads  to  the  contiguity 
of  nations,  the  conditions  alter.  The  state 
that  occupies  but  a  small  region  strives 
to  emulate  its  larger  neighbour.  It  either 
gains  so  much  land  as  is  necessary  to 
restore  equality,  or  forces  a  decrease  in 
the  neighbour's  territory. 


Nations 


THE    SIZE    AND    POWER    OF    NATIONS 


Both  alternatives  have  been  of  frequent 
occurrence.  Prussia  expanded  at  the 
expense  of  Schleswig  and  Poland  in  order 
to  become  equal  in  territory  to  the  other 
great  Powers.  The  whole  of  Europe 
fought  Napoleon  until  France  had  been 
forced  back  within  such  boundaries  as 
were  necessary  to  international  balance. 
-,  Austria  lost  ])rovinces  in  Italy 

g  J  .  and  replaced  them  with  others 

p  in  the  Balkan  Peninsula.     This 

loss  and  gain  ajjpears  to  us, 
in  looking  over  an  easily  epitomised 
history,  such  as  that  of  France,  as  an 
alternation  of  violent  waves  and  temporary 
periods  of  rest  attained  whenever  a 
balance  is  reached.  Therefore  it  is  not 
owing  to  chance  that  the  areas  of  Austria, 
Ge.many,  France,  and  Spain  may  be 
respectively  designated  by  loo,  86,  84, 
and  80,  that  the  area  of  Holland  is  to  that 
of  Belgium  as  100  is  to  90,  and  that  the 
United  States  stands  to  Canada  as  100  to 
96.  To  be  effective,  such  balances  must  pre- 
suppose equal  civilisations,  similar  means 
for  the  acquirement  o  power.  Rome  was 
so  superior  to  her  neighbours  in  civilisa- 
tion that  she  could  not  permit  any  terri- 
torial balance.  Perhaps  the  adoj>tion  of 
the  River  Halys  as  the  boundary  between 
INIedia  and  Lyd  a  was  a  first  attempt  to 
establish  a  national  sj'stem  on  the  principle 
of  balance  instead  of  "  world  "  dominion. 

Our  standards  for  measuring  the  areas 

of    countries    have    constantly    increased 

during  the  growth  of  historical  territories. 

The  history  of  Greece  is  to  us  but   the 

history  of  a  small  state  ;    and  how  many 

years  shall  pass  before  that  of  Germany, 

Austria,  and  France  will  be  but  the  history 

of    nations    of    medium    size  ?     England, 

Russia,    China,    and     he    United    States 

include  the  better  half  of  the  land  of  the 

world  ;    and  to-day  a  British  Empire  in 

the  other  half  could  not  be  conceivable. 

Development  has  ever  seized  on  greater 

and  greater  areas,  and  has 
A  New  British     ^^^-^^^    ^^^^    ^^^  ^^^^  ^^ 

Empire  is  not        .         •  •    . 

^  *^      .      ^ ,     tensive  regions  into  aggre- 

gates.  Thus  it  has  always 
remained  an  organic  movement.  The 
village-state  repeats  itself  in  the  city-state, 
and  the  family-state  in  the  race-state,  the 
smaller  ever  being  reproduced  in  greater 
forms.  The  smallest  and  greatest  nations 
alike  retain  the  same  organic  character- 
istics more  or  less  closely  united  to  the  soil. 
The  surface  of  a  state  bears  a  certain 
relation  to  the  surface  of  the  globe,  and 


according  to  this  standard  is  the  land 
measured  upon  which  the  inhabitants  of  a 
nation  hve,  move,  and  labour.  Thus  it 
may  be  said  that  the  208,687  square  miles 
of  the  German  Empire  represent  about  ;i}o 
of  the  entire  surface  of  the  earth  ;  further, 
that  the  empire  has  a  population  of 
60,500,000,  from  which  the  ratio  of 
5-45  acres  to  each  individual  follows. 
Although  it  is  true  that  wholly  unin- 
habited or  very  thinly  populated  regions, 
high  mountains,  forests,  deserts,  etc.,  may 
be  valuable  from  a  political  j)oint  of  view, 
nevertheless  the  whole  course  of  the 
world's  history  shows  us  that,  as  a  general 
rule,  the  value  of  territory  increases  with 
the  number  of  inhabitants  that  dwell  upon 
it.  Thus,  before  their  disunion,  Norway- 
Sweden,  with  an  area  of  297,000  square 
miles — two-fifths  greater  than  that  of  the 
German  Empire — but  with  a  population 
of  6,800,000,  cannot  be  looked  upon  as  a 
first-class  Power  ;  while  Germany  closely 
approaches  the  Russian  Empire  in  strength, 
for  although  its  area  is  but  4^1  that  of  the 
latter,  its  population  is  only 
one-half  less.  Thus  area 
alone   is   never    the    deciding 


Area  Does 

Not 

Mean  Power 


factor  of  political  power.  In 
the  non-recognition  of  this  fact  lies 
the  source  of  the  greatest  errors  which 
have  been  made  by  conquerors  and  states- 
men. The  powerful  influence  that  small 
states,  such  as  Athens,  Palestine,  and 
Venice,  have  exerted  on  the  history  of  the 
world  proves  that  a  great  expanse  of 
territory  is  by  no  means  indispensable  to 
great  historical  actions.  The  unequal 
distribution  of  mankind  over  a  definite 
area  is  a  much  more  probable  source  of 
political  and  economic  progress. 

Civilisation  and  political  superiority 
have  always  attended  the  thickly  popu- 
lated districts.  Thus  the  whole  of  de- 
velopment has  been  a  progression  from 
small  populations  dwelling  in  extensive 
regions  to  large  populations  concentrated 
in  more  limited  areas.  Progress  first 
awoke  when  division  of  labour  began 
to  organise  and  differentiate  among 
heaped-up  aggregates,  and  to  create  dis- 
crepancies promoting  life  and  develop- 
ment. .A  simple  increase  of  bodies  and 
souls  only  strengthens  that  which  is  already 
in  existence  by  augmenting  the  mass.  In 
China,  India,  and  Egypt,  population  has 
increased  for  a  long  time  ;  but  develop- 
ment of  civilisation  and  of  political  power 
has  been  unable  to  keep  pace  with  it. 

403 


^l,lul^-/^■_^-^^-.■w^-lwu'www^J■,-n-^-J^^-l^-^^w^^: 

THE  MAKING 

OF    THE 
NATIONS— V 


-nji-ii_ll-ji-jUJi--iwwwi-c 


MWWWHVK 


Professor 

FREDERICK 

RATZEL 


jv-n^uMMHW^il-JMMl  'w-'i  n  n  jhumi  ^v-^^-l^-n-^^-lM^-^^-<u^=^r 


aafi 


^^M\  ti  A^Mi-iMMv-iv-iwt  A^-<M>-^-?r 


THE    FUTURE    HISTORY    OF   MAN 


LOOKING  back  upon  the  history  of  man, 
it  appears  to  us  the  history  of  the 
human  race  as  a  hfe  phenomenon  bound 
and  confined  to  this  planet  alone.  We  are 
thus  unable  to  form  any  conception  of 
progress  into  the  infinite,  for  every 
tellurian  life-development  is  dependent 
upon  the  earth,  and  must  always  return 
to  it  again.  New  life  must 
Man  and       ^^j^^^^  ^^^   ^^^^^      Cosmic  in- 

^  fluences  may  broaden  or  narrow 

the  districts  within  which  man 
is  able  to  exist.  This  was  experienced  by 
the  human  race  during  the  Glacial  Period, 
when  the  ice  sheet  first  drove  men  toward 
the  equator,  and  later,  receding,  enabled 
them  once  more  to  spread  out  to  the  north. 
The  limits  of  world  life  in  general  depend 
upon  earthly  influences  ;  and  thus,  for 
mankind,  progress  hmited  by  both  time 
and  space  is  alone  possible. 

Perhaps  it  would  be  well,  for  the  elucida- 
tion of  the  question  of  development,  were 
geography  to  designate  as  progress  only 
that  which  from  sufficient  data  may  be 
established  as  such  beyond  all  doubt. 
Thus,  to  begin  with,  we  have  learned  to 
know  of  a  progress  in  space — man's 
diffusion  over  the  earth — which  proceeds 
in  two  directions.  The  expansion  of  the 
human  race  signifies  not  only  an  extension 
of  the  boundaries  of  inhabited  land  far 
into  the  Polar  regions,  but  also  the  growth 
of  an  intellectual  conception  of  the  whole 
world. 

Together  with  this  progress  there  have 
been  countless  expansions  of  economic 
and  political  horizons,  of  commercial 
routes,  of  the  territories  of  races  and  of 
nations  —  an  extraordinarily 
manifold  growth  that  is  con- 
tinually advancing.  Increase 
of  population  and  of  the  near- 
ness of  approach  of  peoples  to  one  another 
goes  hand  in  hand  with  progressing  space. 
Mankind  cannot  become  diffused  uniformly 
over  new  areas  without  becoming  more  and 
more  familiar  with  the  old.  New  qualities 
of  the  soil  and  new  treasures  have  been 
discovered,  and  thus  the  human  race  has 
constantly  been  made  richer.    While  these 

404 


Manifold 
Growth  of 
Mankind 


gifts  enriched  both  intellect  and  will, 
new  possibihties  were  all  the  while  arising, 
enabling  men  to  dwell  together  in  com- 
munities ;  the  population  of  the  earth 
increased,  and  the  densely  inhabited 
regions,  at  first  but  small,  constantly 
grew  larger  and  larger. 

With  this  increase  in  number,  latent 
abilities  came  to  life  ;  races  approached 
one  another ;  competition  was  entered 
into ;  interpenetration  and  mingling  of 
peoples  followed.  Some  races  acted 
mutually  in  powerfully  developing  one 
another's  characteristics  ;  others  receded 
and  were  lost,  unless  the  earth  offered 
them  a  possibility  of  diffusion  over  better 
protected  regions.  Already  we  see  in 
these  struggles  the  fundamental  motive 
of  the  battle  for  area  ;  and  at  the  same 
time,  on  surveying  this  progress,  we  may 
also  see  the  limit  set  to  it — that  increase 
in  population  is  unfavourable  to  the  pro- 
gress of  civilisation  in  any  definite  area, 
if  the  number  of  inhabitants 
IS  ory  IS     ^become    disproportionately 

,_.„  large   in  respect  to  the  terri- 

of  Differences  ,     °  ■    j        nr 

tory  occupied.     Many  regions 

are  already  over-populated ;  and  the  num- 
bers of  mankind  will  always  be  restricted 
by  the  limits  of  the  habitable  world. 

Already  in  the  differences  in  population 
of  different  regions  lie  motives  for  the 
internal  progress  of  man  ;  but  yet  more 
powerful  are  those  incentives  to  the 
development  of  internal  differences  in 
races  furnished  by  the  earth  itself  through 
the  manifoldness  of  its  conformation. 

The  entire  history  of  the  world  has  thus 
become  an  uninterrupted  process  of 
differentiation.  At  first  arose  the  differ- 
ence between  habitable  and  uninhabitable 
regions,  and  then  within  the  habitable 
areas  occurs  the  action  brought  about  by 
variations  in  zones,  divisions  of  land, 
seas,  mountains,  plains,  steppes,  deserts, 
forests — the  whole  vast  multitude  of 
formations,  taken  both  separately  and  in 
combination.  Through  these  influences 
arise  the  differences  which  must  at  first 
develop  to  a  certain  extent  in  isolation 
before  it  is  possible  for  them  to  act  upon 


THE    FUTURE    HISTORY    OF    MAN 


one  another,  and  to  alter,  either  favour- 
ably or  unfavourably,  the  original  charac- 
teristics of  men. 

All  the  variations  in  race  and  in  civilisa- 
tion shown  by  different  peoples  of  the 
world,  and  the  differences  in  power  shown 
by  states,  may  be  traced  to  the  ultimate 
processes  of  differentiation  occasioned  by 
variations  in  situation,  cli- 
n'Ji    f  j**^**  ^  mate,  and  soil,  and  to  which 

Reflected  j.^  .       .\         ■ 

.    ..    n      ,        the     constantly     mcreasnis; 

m  its  Peoples  •       i-  r        -^  .1,1° 

mmglmg  01  races,  that  be- 
comes more  and  more  (omplex  with  the 
diffusion  of  mankind  over  the  globe,  has 
also  contributed.  The  birth  of  Roman 
daughter  states,  and  the  rise  of  Hispano- 
Americans  and  Lusitano-Americans  from 
some  of  these  very  daughter  nations,  are 
evidences  of  a  development  that  ever  strives 
for  separation,  for  diffusion  over  space, 
which  may  be  compared  only  to  the  trunk 
of  a  tree  developing,  and  putting  forth 
branches  and  twigs.  But  the  bole  that  has 
sent  forth  so  many  branches  and  twigs  was 
certainly  a  twig  itself  at  one  time  ;  and 
thus  the  process  of  differentiation  is 
repeated  over  and  over  again.  Progress 
in  respect  to  population  and  to  occupied 
area  is  undoubted  ;  but  can  these  daughter 
nations  be  compared  to  Rome  in  other 
respects  ?  They  have  shown  great  powers 
of  assimilation  and  great  tenacity,  for 
they  have  held  their  ground.  Never- 
theless, their  greatest  achievement  has 
been  to  have  clung  fast  to  the  earth  ;  in 
other  words,  to  have  persisted.  Certainly 
this  is  far  more  important  than  the 
internal  progress  in  which  the  branches 
might  perhaps  have  been  able  to  surpass 
the  older  nation. 

It  is  an  important  principle  that  since 
all  life  is  and  must  be  closely  attached 
to  the  soil,  no  superiority  may  exist 
permanently  unless  it  be  able  to  obtain 
and  to  maintain  ground.  In  the  long  run, 
the  decisive  element  of  every  historical 
force  is  its  relation  to  the  land.  Thus  great 
forces  may  be  seen  to  weaken 
in  the  course  of  a  long 
struggle  with  lesser  forces 
whose  sole  advantage  consists 
in  their  being  more  firmly  rooted  in  the 
soil.  The  warlike,  progressive,  on-marching 
Mongols  and  Manchus  conquered  China, 
it  is  true,  but  they  have  been  absorbed 
into  the  dense  native  population  and  have 
assumed  the  native  customs.  The  same 
illustration    applies    to    the    foundnig    of 


Decisive 
Element  in 
a  Nation 


nations  by  all  nomadic  races,  especially 
in  the  case  of  the  Southern  European 
German  states  that  arose  at  the  time  of  the 
migration  of  Germanic  peoples.  The 
health  and  promise  of  the  English  Colonies 
in  Australia  present  a  striking  contrast 
to  the  gloom  that  reigns  over  India,  of 
which  the  significance  lies  only  in  a  weary 
governing,  conserving,  and  ex])loiting  of 
three  hundred  millions  of  human  beings. 
In  Australia  the  soil  is  acquired  ;  in  India 
only  the  j)eople  have  been  conquered. 
Will  a  time  ever  come  when  all  fertile 
lands  will  be  as  densely  populated  as 
India  and  China  ?  Then  the  most  civilised, 
evolved  nation  will  have  no  more  space 
in  which  to  develop,  maintain,  and  root 
its  better  characteristics  ;  and  the  success 
of  a  state  will  not  result  from  the  posses- 
sion of  active  forces,  but  from  vegetative 
endowments — freedom  from  wants,  longe- 
vity, and  fertility. 

Even  though  the  future  may  bring 
with  it  a  union  of  all  nations  in  the  world 
into  the  one  great  community  already 
spoken  of  in  the  Gospel  of  John, 
growth  may  take  place  only  through 
differentiation.    And  thus  there 

ft,  °*  is  no  necessity  for  our  shar- 
°     .*  ing   the    fear    that    a    world- 

&  ions  state  would  swallow  up  all 
national  and  racial  differences,  and  all 
variations  in  civilisation. 

From  the  fact  that  history  is  move- 
ment, it  follows  that  the  geographer 
must  recognise  the  necessity  for  progress 
in  space  in  the  sense  of  a*  widening  out  of 
the  historical  ground,  and  a  progressive 
increase  of  the  population  of  this  ground  ; 
further,  a  development  toward  the  goal 
of  higher  forms  of  hie  together  with  an 
uninterrupted  struggle  for  space  between 
the  older  and  newer  hfe-forms.  Yet,  for 
all  this,  the  definite  bounds  set  to  the 
scene  of  life  by  the  limited  area  of  our 
planet  always  remain. 

Finally,  all  development  on  earth  is 
dependent  on  the  universe,  of  which  our 
world  is  but  a  grain  of  sand,  and  to  the 
time  of  which  what  we  call  universal 
history  is  but  a  moment.  There  must  be 
other  connections,  definite  roads  upon 
which  to  travel,  and  distant  goals,  far 
beyond.  We  surmise  an  eternal  law  of  all 
things  ;  but  in  order  to  know,  we  should 
need  to  be  God  himself.  To  us  only  the 
belief  in  it  is  given. 

Frederick  Ratzel 


405 


THE    FAR    EAST    DIVISION    OF    THE     HISTORY    OF    THE    AVORLD 

•  1.1-  i.u     tr-„..  ,nH  ^r.rr.cc  iirpst u/a rfl   round  the  world.      Japan  is  therefore  the  first  country  to 
This  History  begins  with  the  ^astanj  comes  wes|wa^^^^  extending  far  west,  must  be  treated  as  one. 

come  into  its  survey,  and  froni  Japan  we  travel  to  r^mena  ,  B  j,  ■   ^^  j,,g  ..p^^^  g^^f  ^„en  thus 

te^lefllolrllZcii^^^^^^  whUe  p'rtiS.ronhis'nap  is  trLted  in  the  Grand  Division  which  now  opeus. 


406 


SECOND     GRAND     DIVISION 

THE    FAR    EAST 

The  Far  East  falls  into  two  sections,  Asiatic  and  Oceanic. 

The  Asiatic  comprises  the  insular  empire  of  Japan  ;  and, 
on  the  continent,  China,  Korea,  and  Siberia,  the  extreme 
northern  territory  which,  though  extending  far  westward, 
must  be  treated  as  one. 

The  Oceanic  division  includes  the  Australian  continent, 
with  the  island  of  Tasmania  ;  the  Pacific  islands  grouped 
under  the  names  of  Melanesia,  Micronesia,  and  Polynesia, 
to  which  last  New  Zealand  is  attached,  the  whole  being 
conveniently  associated  under  the  name  of  Oceania  ;  and 
the  Malay  Archipelago,  or  Malaysia,  lying  between  Australia 
and  the  Asiatic  continent. 

Of  these  three  sections  of  Oceanic  Far  East  only 
Malaysia  has  a  record  extending  over  centuries.  The 
history  of  the  other  two,  till  the  white  sea-going  races 
began  to  settle  among  them,  is  inferential,  conjectural.  A 
doubt  was  suggested  whether  New  Zealand  should  be 
attached  rather  to  Australia  than  to  Oceania,  for  the 
reason  that  it  has  developed  into  one  of  the  group  of 
autonomous  states  which  make  up  so  large  a  portion  of 
the  British  Empire  ;  but  this  consideration  must  clearly 
yield    to    those     based     on     geography    and     ethnology. 

PLAN 

THE  INTEREST  &  IMPORTANCE  OF  THE  FAR  EAST 

Angus    Hamilton 

JAPAN 
Arthur  Diosy  and  Max  von  Brandt 

SIBERIA 
Dr.  E.  J.  Dillon  and  other  writers 

CHINA 

Sir  Robert  K.  Douglas.  W.  R.  Carles,  C.M.G.. 
and  other  ^^riters 

KOREA 
Angus  Hamilton 

AUSTRALIA  &   OCEANIA 
Hon.  Bernbard  R.  Wise  and  Professor  Weule 

MALAYSIA 

Basil  Thomson  and  other  writers 

INFLUENCE   OF  THE    PACIFIC    OCEAN    IN    HISTORY 


L7\NDS  &  PEOPL 


OF  THE  FXr   E^^T 

THE   INTEREST  AND   IMPORTANCE 

OF    THE    FAR    EAST 
BY      ANGUS      HAMILTON 


""THE   influence   of  environment  upon  a 
■*•       people  is  seldom  shown  more  promi- 
nently than  in  the  high  degree  of  civilisation 
attained  by  the  early  Chinese. 

Although  the  records  are  shrouded  in 
mystery  and  marred  by  discrepancies,  a 
consensus  of  scientific  opinion  traces  the 
origin  of  the  Chinese  to  a  nomad  tribe 
who,  setting  out  from  the  shores  of  the 
Caspian,  continued  to  wander  until  it 
found  a  home  on  the  banks  of  the  Yellow 
River  and  in  the  plains  of  Shansi.  Under 
the  influence  of  these  immigrants,  the  rude 
manners  of  the  aboriginals  gave  way  to 
conditions  in  which  a  knowledge  of  the 
smelting  of  iron  and  the  resources  of 
agriculture  was  acquired.  In  the  up- 
ward process  of  development,  the  weaving 
of  flax  into  garments  and  the  spinning 
of  silk  from  cocoons  followed ;  then, 
with  primeval  chaos  reduced  to  order 
and  the  faculties  quickened  by  habits  of 
industry,  the  beginnings  of  government 
were  made  in  the  separation  of  the  tribes 
from  one  another  under  their  own  leaders. 

While  conditions  of  a  settled  existence 
were  in  course  of  attainment  within  the 
region  which  is  now  known  as  China 
Proper,  the  spectacle  of  a  prosperous 
civilisation,  reacting  upon  the  uncouth 
instincts  of  tribes  dwelling  among  the 
grassy  uplands  of  Mongolia  and  the  plains 
of  Manchuria  or  amid  the  ice-clad  fast- 
nesses of  the  mountains  and  forest-strewn 
valleys  of  the  farthest  north,  was  presently 
to  be  responsible  for  the  rise  of  predatory 


races,  who,  in  the  zenith  of  their  strength, 
regarded  the  teeming  cities  of  the  south 
as  lawful  prizes.  While  the  northern 
heights  of  Asia  were  producing  a  race  that 
was  to  leave  an  indelible  impression  on 
the  whole  of  the  Asiatic  Continent,  the 
evolution  of  a  no  less  spec  fie  type  was 
proceeding  in  the  islands  off  the  coast. 
Carried  by  a  wave  of  migration  from  India, 
which  lapped  the  coast  of  Malaysia, 
Indo-China  and  Polynesia,  and  mingled  in 
the  islands  of  the  Yellow  Sea  with  a  stream 
from  New  Guinea  so  that  separate  ethno- 
graphic identities  were  lost,  were  tribes  who 
looked  to  the  ocean  for  their  existence 
much  as  the  earlier  Chinese  relied  upon 
the  proceeds  of  their  husbandry  and  the 
northern  nomads  upon  their  flocks. 

Glancing  at  the  people  living  amid  the 
plains,  the  uplands,  and  the  islands,  it 
will  be  seen  that  an  irresistible  force  was 
enveloping  the  several  races,  moulding 
their  instincts  and  idiosyncrasies  in  accord 
with  the  nature  of  their  environment. 
Thus,  while  the  Chinese,  under  the  incen- 
tive of  a  knowledge  of  arts  and  crafts,  had 
already  produced,  in  2356  B.C.,  a  system 
of  civihsation  destined  to  endure  to  our 
time,  the  nomads  and  the  islanders, 
unqualified  by  knowledge  and  controlled 
by  climate,  were  hardly  removed  from  a 
state  of  savagery  a  few  centuries  before 
the  Christian  era. 

If  the  passage  of  4,000  years  has 
affected  the  Chinese  no  more  than  the 
gUding  of  an  hour,  the  existence  of  this 

409 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


great  impassive  people  has  not  been  with- 
out its  effect  upon  the  nations  of  Europe 
as  upon  the  races  of  the  Farthest  East. 

A  point  of  ancient  contact  between 
Christendom  and  the  world  of  Confucius, 
reflecting,  in  contemporary  Japan  to- 
day the  more  permanent  qualities  of  its 
teaching,  China  has  stirred  the  spirits  of 
the  adventurous  in  all  ages  by 
».  its    singular    graces    of   refine- 

/ch'  ^  ment,  its  hidden  wealth  and 
the  exquisiteness  of  its  artistic 
perceptions.  Arousing  the  curiosity  of 
the  Arab  traders  as  early  as  the  eighth 
century,  it  was  known  to  the  ancients, 
if  they  journeyed  by  the  Southern 
Sea,  as  the  kingdom  of  Sin,  Chin,  Sinae, 
or  China,  in  corruption,  perhaps,  of  the 
word  Tzin — under  which  dynasty  occurred, 
in  250  B.C.,  the  fusion  of  several  petty 
kingdoms  into  an  organic  empire  ;  or  by 
the  name  of  Seres  if,  traversing  the  longi- 
tude of  Asia,  they  came  by  the  overland 
route.  Known  to  the  Middle  Ages  by  the 
name  of  Cathay — corrupted  from  Kitai,  the 
name  by  which  Chma  is  still  described  by 
Russia  and  by  the  races  of  Central  Asia, 
but  which  itself  sprang  from  the  Khitans, 
the  first  of  the  northern  dynasties — it 
represented  to  European  commerce  of 
the  thirteenth  century  the  embodiment 
of  wealth,  romance,  and  mystery;  much  as 
its  position,  maintained  unchanged  through 
long  centuries,  had  made  it  the  actual 
repository  of  the  records  of  Central,  as  well 
as  Southern,  Asia. 

Contemporary  with  the  early  Egyptians, 
the  Assyrians,  and  the  Hebrews,  and  com- 
prising an  empire  that  in  241  B.C.  repre- 
sented as  nearly  as  possible  the  present 
limits  of  the  Eighteen  Provinces,  the 
Middle  Kingdom  has  been  affected  by 
the  great  upheavals  of  the  Western 
world  as  little  as  she  herself  has  troubled 
to  impress  her  methods  and  manner  of 
government  upon  the  aboriginal  races 
beyond  her  borders.  Indeed,  filled  with 
-^  th  ^  lofty  disdain  of  the  outer 
Middl '  barbarians,  it  was  not  until  the 

j^.     .  chance    migration    to     Korea 

of  some  five  thousand  Chinese 
under  Ki-tze,  in  1122  B.C.,  that  the 
ethical,  social,  and  political  systems  in 
vogue  in  China  were  carried  further  afield. 
Once  transplanted,  however,  the  aboriginal 
life  of  the  cave-dwellers  of  the  peninsula 
gave  way  before  the  superior  culture  of 
Ki-tze's  followers,  and  within  the  course 
of  the  succeeding  thousand  years  a  cluster 
410 


of  independent  states,  fashioned  upon  the 
parental  model,  was  firmly  established. 

Although  in  the  centuries  just  before  the 
Christian  era  there  was  a  constant  inter- 
change   of    communications    with    these 
states  of  the  Eastern  Peninsula,  the  classic 
conservatism  of  the  Middle  Kingdom  was 
unabated  by  any  expression  of  curiosity  or 
interest   in  the  welfare   of   the   unknown 
islands.   Yet  the  islanders,  confronted  with 
a  struggle  for  existence,   had  risked  the 
perils  of  many  voyages  to  the  neighbouring 
coasts,  spreading  wonderful  stories  of  their 
own  land  and  returning  with  ample  evi- 
dences of  the  power  and  importance  of  the 
Korean   kingdom.      Unconscious   of   this 
intercourse,   but  by  reason  of  it,   China, 
the  tutor  of  Korea,  became  through  the 
agency  of  her  pupil  a  determining  factor 
in  the  upward  progression  of  the  islanders 
when,  between  290  B.C.  and  215  B.C.,  in 
consequence    of    dynastic    difficulties,    a 
steady   stream   of   inhabitants    from    the 
peninsula  passed  from  the  Land  of  Morning 
Radiance  eastwards  with  the  intention  of 
settling  on  the  coasts  of  Japan,  with  whose 
inhabitants,  in  fact,  they  at  once  merged. 
Though  at  the  other  end   of    the   pole 
of  human  endeavour  in  comparison  with 
the  Chinese,  and  familiar  only 
with  the  elemental  accessories 
to  life,  the  islanders,  under  the 
influence  of   this  alien  strain, 
at  the  dawn  of  our  era  had  emerged  from 
a  state  of  tribal  control  to  the  recognition 
of  the  authority  of  a  single  and  supreme 
ruler.     Two  centuries  later  Japanese  arms 
were    strong    enough    to    invade    Korea, 
where  several  victories  were  gained ;  but 
even  then  the  Middle  Kingdom  maintained 
no  communication  with  the  islands  of  the 
Yellow  Sea,  and  was  more  or  less  indifferent 
to  the  rise  of  over-sea  relations  between  her 
vassal  and  the  mariners  from  the  East, 
It  is  possible  to  trace  to  this  obliquity  in 
the  political  vision  of  the  Celestial  Empire 
of  the  day  much  of  the  subsequent  havoc 
that  the  self-same  race  were  to  inflict  upon 
the  coasts  of  Asia.     Impressed  with  no 
consideration  for  the  interests  of  the  main- 
land, and  troubled  by  no  sense  of  material 
responsibility,    Japanese   corsairs    harried 
the  Chinese  and  Korean  coasts  unmerci- 
fully, finding  in  the  occupation  an  outlet 
for  that  primitive  but  inherited  instinct  for 
aggression  that  stimulates  the  race  to-day. 
Disturbed  less  by  the  appearance  of  an 
island   Power  than   by  a  confederacy  of 
barbarian  clans  that,  by  1000  A.D.,  had 


Japan  at 
the  Dawa  of 
Our  Era 


THE    INTEREST    AND    IMPORTANCE    OF    THE    FAR    EAST 


exerted  a  mastery  over  Mongolia,  Tartary, 
and  Manchuria,  and  a  century  later 
served  as  a  menace  to  the  safety  of 
the  dynasty  itself,  the  Celestial  Empire 
was  beset  on  two  sides  by  enemies  who 
were  attracted  by  the  prosperity  of  its 
people.  Unmindful  to  a  great  degree  of 
the  dangers  which  were  accumulating,  an 
instinct  for  and  an  interest  in  trade,  con- 
firmed by  the  revelation  of  the  self- 
supporting  character  of  an  empire  that 
reached  to  Cochin-China  in  one  direction 
and  the  Pamirs  in  another,  prompted  the 
Chinese  to  neglect  the  arts  of  war  in  their 
preference  for  the  triumjihs  of  peace. 

Characterised  by  a  capacity  for  infinite 
pains,  and  possessed  of  a  complete  under- 
standing of  the  varied  resources  of  agri- 
culture, the  Chinese  insensibly  pursued 
a  path  leading  always  in  a  contrary 
direction  to  those  marked  out  by  Nature 
for  the  islanders,  as  for  the  fierce  nomads 
of  the  steppe.  Thus  innately  addicted  to 
habits  of  peace,  centuries  upon  centuries  of 
undisturbed  prosperity  chastened  natures 
that  were  never  very  warlike  ;  whereas  the 
exact  inversion  of  this  existence  propelled 
those  hordes  of  Tartars,  Huns,  Turks, 
^  Khitans,  Kins,  Mongols,  and 

p    .     J  Manchus    to   leave    the   Far 

the  Chinese  ^^^^^  ^"  ^  disfiguring  passage 
through  Asia,  and  bade  the 
islanders  release  their  sails  in  expeditions 
against  Korea.  It  was  not  enough  for  the 
founder  of  the  Tzin  dynasty  to  fortify  his 
northern  frontiers  by  the  construction  of 
the  Great  Wall,  or  for  that  great  warrior 
Panchow  to  drive  the  Huns  before  him  to 
theOxus  itself,  or  for  the  rulers  in  the  long 
period  of  disunion  which  unites  the  fall  of 
the  Han  dynasty  to  the  rise  of  the  Sung  to 
compromise  with  the  leaders  of  successive 
rushes  of  barbarian  horsemen  by  matri- 
monial alliances  with  their  families.  The 
cause  lay  in  the  foundations  of  the  race 
itself.  Yet,  such  was  the  insidious  charac- 
ter of  the  land  against  which  these  mounted 
hordes  so  often  fiung  themseK'es  that, 
although  the  imminence  of  attack  ulti- 
mately became  a  thing  with  which  the 
Government  of  China  was  wont  to  conjure 
the  peaceful,  well-contented  lower  classes 
and  the  lu.xury-loving  upper  classes,  the 
effect  of  each  invasion  was  dissipated  so 
soon  as  the  invaders  experienced  the  subtle 
blandishments  of  Chinese  civilisation. 

Presented  with  remarkable  clearness, 
we  have  an  array  of  devastating  invasions. 
the   one   following   the   other    in    rapid 


succession  and  occasionally  assuming  such 

dimensions  that  the  operations  riveted  the 

attent.on  of  Europe  ujion  the  little-known 

lands   of  Asia,    which   in   most   instances 

required  only  the  passage  of  a  few  centuries 

for  the  minutest  vestige  to  be  obliterated. 

Thus    the    Kins,  who   left    no   trace,  dis- 

c   ...         .  placed  the  Khitans,  equally 

„.  .  .  , ....  irrecoverable,  and  were  m 
nistory  in  Little    ,  ,•  j     i^       ^i 

I.  ,      .        turn   dispossessed   by  the 

Known  Lands        ,,  ,     '  ,  •'      .  , 

Mongols,  whose  wide 
dominion  embraced  so  much  of  the 
earth's  surface  that  in  1227  a.d.  the  whole 
of  High  Asia,  from  the  Caspian  to  Korea, 
and  from  the  Indus  to  the  Yellow  Sea, 
recognised  its  sway — always  excej)ting  the 
strong  but  still  despised  sea-state  of 
Japan,  whose  lusty  inhabitants  threw 
back  the  allied  hosts  of  China,  Korea,  and 
the  Mongol  monarch  in  1274  and  1281. 

Yet  if  the  Mongols,  in  an  effort  to  wreak 
their  vengeance  on  the  Chinese,  razed  to 
the  ground  the  cities  of  the  vanquished  so 
that  their  horsemen  could  ride  over  their 
deserted  sites  without  stumbling,  none 
the  less  they  earned  the  acclamations  of 
posterity  by  the  facilities  that  the  Mongol 
domination  of  Central  Asia  offered  to 
communications  between  the  West  and 
Cathay.  Marco  Polo  was  not  alone  in  his 
knowledge  of  the  Court  of  the  Great  Khan, 
although  doubtless  he  was  the  first  to  visit 
it.  But  this  liberty  of  intercourse,  existing 
only  by  the  land  route  to  Asia,  was  mea- 
sured solely  by  the  duration  of  the  Mongol 
rule  ;  freedom  of  action  along  the  high-road 
from  West  to  East  stopped  prematurely 
when  the  sway  of  Islam  settled  once  again 
over  Central  Asia.  Two  centuries  elapsed 
before,  under  the  banners  of  the  Manchus, 
bold  horsemen  of  the  North,  in  1644,  flashed 
once  again  through  the  plains  of  China, 
imposing,  by  a  change  of  costume  and  of 
coiffure,  perhaps  the  most  striking  effect  of 
any  that  has  followed  in  the  train  of  these 
invasions. 

But  if  the  exclusivencss  of  the  Moham- 
medan conquerors  closed  the  route  to 
.  Cathay  so  effectually  that  for 

Opening  ^^^.^  hundred  years  nothing 
the  Gates  of  ^^^^^^  ^^.^^  j^^^^.^  ^^  ^j^^  country, 
the  Last  Columbus,  Cabot  and  others 
set  themselves  the  task  of  opening  up 
communications  by  water.  But  it  was 
not  Cathay  that  they  reached.  That  was 
left  to  the  Portuguese  Raphael  Perestralo 
to  accomplish  by  sailing,  in  1511,  from 
Malacca  to  Canton,  and  thus  winning 
the  coveted  distinction  of  first  approaching 

411 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


China  by  sea.  Fifty  years  later  (1560) 
the  same  race  succeeded  in  obtaining  a 
settlement  at  Macao,  while  the  Spaniards 
gazed  with  longing  eyes  from  their  strong- 
holds in  the  Philippine  Islands  upon  the 
rich  junks  on  the  China  seas.  Such  was 
the  effect  of  these  trading  visits  from  the 
West  that  the  Chinese  in  their  turn 
were  emboldened  to  visit  for 
"v  •!       themselves      these       outlying 

.    ■  centres  of  Western  traffic.    But 

iQ  Japan  ..  hi 

it  was    more    usually    vessels 

from  Japan  that  were  seen,  for  the  Chinese 
were  still  without  any  special  appetite  for 
Western  trade.  With  the  islanders,  oti  the 
other  hand,  a  love  of  barter,  acting  on  the 
native  instincts  of  a  maritime  people, 
caused  them  to  traverse  these  more  distant 
waters  ;  although  occasionally  the  scanti- 
ness of  the  resources  in  their  own  country 
moved  them,  so  that  they  were  propelled 
as  much  by  stern  necessity  as  by  the 
lust  of  war  and  loot  or  a  passion  for 
trade.  At  first  Polynesia,  then  Malaysia 
and  India  were  visited.  Again,  trips 
were  made  to  the  remote  coasts  of  Mexico. 
Still  later,  a  colony  founded  at  Goa 
became  the  centre  of  an  important  trading 
connection  throughout  the  Indian  hemi- 
sphere. In  these  voyages  we  see  the 
attractive  influence  exercised  by  the 
Pacific  and  the  Indian  Oceans  on  an 
island  people,  who,  fitted  by  temperament 
no  less  than  by  position,  played  in  Eastern 
waters  the  role  filled  by  the  Elizabethan 
explorers  on  the  coasts  of  the  New  World. 
As  yet  the  distinctive  call  of  the  East 
had  been  heard  only  along  the  byways  of 
Turkestan,  and  even  those  who  had 
responded  had  ventured  no  further  than 
the  provinces  of  Cathay.  Thus  the  isles 
of  the  Yellow  Sea  were  to  the  Western 
mariner  at  the  dawn  of  the  sixteenth 
century  as  much  a  terra  incognita  as  the 
Arctic  and  Antarctic  regions  are  to  the 
sailor  of  to-day.  The  spectacle  of  Japanese 
junks  sailing  gaily  across  the  heaving 
waters  of  the  Spanish  Main 
and  rounding  the  heel  of  India 
aroused  the  interest  of  the 
Western  traders,  who  at  once 
embarked  for  the  fortunate  lands  of  the 
East,  arranging  relations  there  even  before 
they  had  been  welcomed  by  the  Chinese. 
With  the  arrival  of  Portuguese  traders 
off  Japan  in  1542,  a  curtain  was  raised 
which  was  never  quite  to  descend.  In 
the  interval  a  commercial  entrepot  was 
established  on  the  island  of  Hirado,  and 

412 


Raising 

the 

Curtain 


an  intercourse  set  afoot  that  encouraged 
a  visit  from  a  Spanish  squadron  towards 
the  close  of  the  sixteenth  century.  This 
visit  was  returned  in  1602  by  the  despatch 
of  a  ceremonial  embassy  to  the  Governor- 
General  of  the  Philippines. 

Throughout  the  first  half  of  that  century 
Japan  continued  to  attract  the  adventu- 
rous, and  the  Dutch  now  followed  in  the 
wake  of  the  Portuguese  and  Spanish 
ships.  The  reception  of  the  bold  spirits 
was  unequal,  and  in  1624  all  foreigners 
except  the  Dutch  and  the  EngUsh  were 
banished.  By  1641  no  traders  were 
allowed  but  Dutch,  who,  in  spite  of  being 
restricted  to  the  island  of  Deshima, 
enjoyed  a  monopoly  of  the  trade  with 
Japan  until  1867.  In  the  meantime, 
abroad,  rumours  of  the  untold  wealth  of 
Asia  had  brought  the  Indies,  together 
with  Cathay  and  Japan,  into  distinct 
prominence.  Under  the  Chinese  Emperor 
Kien-Lung,  whose  reign  of  sixty  years, 
1735-1795,  was  remarkable  for  its  con- 
quests and  successful  administration, 
commercial  intercourse  with  the  West 
was  regularised,  and  the  founding  of 
recognised  trading  settlements  on  the 
China  coast  ended  the  era 
^  °  .  of   furtive   attempts    to    open 

.   .  trade   relations  with    this   ex- 

clusive people.  From  these 
early  trading  stations  have  sprung  the 
several  commercial  capitals  that  now 
grace  the  China  coast.  Hong  Kong,  Canton, 
Shanghai,  Tientsin,  and  Newchang  are 
the  links  existing  to-day  between  the 
magnificence  of  the  merchant  princes  and 
the  sway  of  the  "  John  Company."  Of 
course  conditions  are  now  much  altered, 
yet  the  memories  of  the  past  find  a  very 
splendid  setting  in  the  size,  dignity,  and 
importance  of  the  modern  treaty  ports. 
Although  the  Fai  East  was  already  mani- 
festing its  powers  of  holding  the  attention 
of  the  civilised  world,  the  centres  of 
interest  there  were  concerned  for  many 
years  solely  with  the  kingdoms  of  China 
and  Japan. 

Australasia  was  a  great  unknown  when 
the  high  latitudes  of  Asia  were  the  fount 
of  many  conquering  races.  Obviously, 
therefore,  the  magnet  of  acquisitiveness 
pointed  to  the  value  of  investigating  the 
bleak  northern  steppes.  Once  started, 
the  Pacific  and  the  Amur  were  reached 
within  eighty  years  under  the  impetus 
of  an  unrelenting  progress  which  swept 
from  west,  to  eg^t  across  the  regions  of 


413 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


North  Asia.  Begun  at  the  instigation  ot 
Stroganoff,  who  pushed  the  hesitating 
footsteps  of  Yermak  across  the  Urals  in 
1580,  by  1584  this  gahant  freebooter 
was  offering  to  Ivan  IV.  with  no  uncertain 
voice  the  wide  dominions  of  Siberia  as  the 
price  of  pardon.  Khan  after  khan  was 
unseated,  tribe  after  tribe  dispossessed, 
for  neither  Tartar  nor  Turk, 
Buriat     nor     Tunguse,    could 


China  on 
the  Western 
Horizon 


offer  effective  resistance  to 
the  Cossacks  from  the  Don. 
In  the  end  this  all-conquering  advance 
was  stayed  by  the  Chinese,  who,  in 
the  treaty  of  Nertchinsk,  1689,  con- 
tracted their  first  formal  convention  with 
a  foreign  Power.  For  nearly  two  centuries 
Russia  faithfully  observed  the  terms  of 
this  engagement,  apprehensive  of  en- 
dangering the  Kiachta  trade  if  she  con- 
tinued her  encroachments  upon  Manchu 
territory.  By  this  action  the  trade  of 
China,  which  has  now  made  the  problem 
of  the  Far  East  of  dominating  importance, 
became  of  more  than  passing  interest  to 
a  Western  Government.  As  generations 
passed,  however,  the  advance  of  Russia, 
to  the  Pacific  in  one  direction,  and  in 
search  of  a  warm-water  harbour  in  another, 
was  resumed.  First  Eastern  Siberia  and 
then  Northern  Manchuria  were  added  to 
her  Asiatic  satrapy,  and  the  Amur  ceased 
to  be  the  containing  line.  Ultimately  her 
frontier  rested  on  the  ocean  to  the  north, 
the  east,  and  the  south ;  Vladivostock, 
Port  Arthur,  Harbin,  and  Mukden 
becoming  the  centres  from  which  her  Far 
Eastern  dominions  were  administered. 

The  spirit  of  adventure,  now  inspiring 
all  ranks  of  society  as  well  as  most  of  the 
civilised  races  of  the  world,  was  by  no 
means  satisfied  by  territorial  conquest. 
The  wide  dominions  of  the  sea,  as  yet 
untraced  and  all  unknown,  embraced  an 
empire  which  appealed  as  strikingly  to 
the  sympathies  of  geographers  as  did  the 
prospects  of  Far  Eastern  trade  to  the 
feelings  of  the  East  India 
merchants.  Much  the  same 
-  ..  ceaseless  quest  carried  the 
Cossack  Dejneff,  in  1648,  round 
the  north-eastern  extremity  of  Asia  ;  Torres, 
a  Spaniard  commissioned  by  the  Spanish 
Government  of  Peru,  in  1606  nego- 
tiated the  strait  between  New  Guinea 
and  the  mainland ;  and  various  Dutch 
expeditions  in  1606,  1616,  1618,  1627  and 
1642  endured  the  dangers  of  the  reef- 
bound  coasts.     But  it  was  not  until   t688 

414 


The  English 
Find 


that  the  English  first  made  their  appear- 
ance on  the  Australian  coast.  In 
some  measure  the  situation  was  await- 
ing the  man.  The  voyages  of  Captain 
Cook  (1769-1777)  took  up  the  work  of 
geographical  exploration  in  the  Southern 
Hemisphere  in  a  style  quite  befitting  the 
records  already  elsewhere  accomplished. 

If  between  the  continent  of  Australia 
and  the  coasts  of  China  to-day  thereis  only 
a  commercial  connection,  it  must  not  be 
forgotten  that  Australia  is  closely  identified 
with  the  Polynesian  races,  who  in  turn 
are  related  to  the  early  Japanese.  New 
Zealand,  Australia,  New  Caledonia,  and 
New  Guinea,  as  parts  of  one  and  the 
same  continent,  which  now  in  many  places 
has  disappeared  beneath  the  sea,  pi'esent 
an  ethnographic  study  of  unusual  impor- 
tance and  interest.  In  few  other  parts 
of  the  world  is  so  great  an  ethnographic 
variation  imposed  upon  a  single  con- 
necting racial  family  as  in  the  island 
divisions  of  the  South  Seas — Australasia, 
Polynesia,  Micronesia,  and  Melanesia.  It 
is  by  the  existence  of  this  underlying 
relationship  that  the  Indo-Pacific  races, 
whatever  their  specific  origin, 
aci  ic  an  undoubtedly  link  up  two 
the  Destinies  ,         •      ,  v-   1,  •      n 

J  p  J  hemispheres  which  organically 
eop  es  ^^^  widely  separated.  By  the 
abruptly  disintegrated  character  of  exist- 
ing racial  location,  however,  it  is  possible 
to  read  the  impression  made  by  the 
Pacific  Ocean  on  the  history  of  the  world. 
If  oceanic  influences  are  represented  in 
other  ways  to-day,  and  tribal  migrations 
in  a  body  are  occurrences  of  the  past,  the 
necessities  of  the  age  still  make  such 
heavy  demands  on  what  is,  after  all,  the 
immemorial  highway  of  mankind  that  the 
Pacific  can  still  be  said  to  mould  the 
destinies  of  races  to-day  as  easily  as  it 
has  obliterated  them  in  the  past. 

Turning  to  Asia,  although  the  Empires 
of  Russia  in  Siberia  and  of  China 
have  worked  out  their  destinies  inde- 
pendently of  the  Pacific,  remaining  un- 
affected by  it  more  than  all  other  Eastern 
states,  the  part  that  the  Pacific  has  played 
in  the  development  of  Asia  since  the 
eighteenth  century  cannot  go  unnoticed. 
Japan,  in  particular,  has  profited  by  the 
readiness  of  communication  that  the 
ocean  provides  to  rise  above  prejudices 
which  are  usually  inseparable  from  an 
island  people  and  are  pre-eminently  to  be 
expected  among  Asiatics.  In  China  the 
absence  of  any  prominent  dependence  on 


THE    INTEREST    AND    IMPORTANCE    OF    THE    FAR    EAST 


the  sea,  either  for  food  or  means  of  trans- 
port, has  produced  in  very  sinister  form 
an  aversion  against  the  West.  None  the 
less,  under  pressure  from  the  Occident, 
and  without  regarding  the  example  set 
by  Japan,  the  Celestial  Empire  has 
permitted  much  commercial  encroach- 
ment. Succeeding  the  galleons  of  the 
buccaneers  have  come  the  stately  traders 
of  the  merchant  princes  of  Europe  and 
America,  and  these  in  turn  have  given 
place  to  the  steamers  of  industrial  trusts, 
exacting  as  large  a  tribute  as  the  earliest 
marauders.  While  the  consequences  of 
industrial  expansion  among  Oriental  people 
have  made  the  Pacific  the  focus  of  much 
restless  energy,  Japan,  now  as  great  a 
Power  on  land  as  foiTnerly  she  was,  and 
is,  at  sea,  has  developed  an  intelligence 
that  has  made  her  pre-eminent  among  the 
trading  nations  of  the  East.  Undeterred 
by  exertion,  unmoved  by  expenditure, 
Japan  has  displaced  the  carrying  trade 
of  the  Pacific  by  her  fearless  invasion 
of  Western  markets.  Throughout  the 
isles  of  the  Southern  Seas,  and  up  and 
down  the  face  of  the  Pacific  slope,  the 
.       islanders  have  swarmed,  filUng 

„    *  ^*       the  lands  of  their  passage  with 
Happen  -  j 

To-morrow  ?""^^^"^^°"^^^  energy. 

Looking  back,  then,  at  the 
conditions  of  Asia  in  the  eighteenth  and 
nineteenth  centuries,  and  comparing  them 
with  those  existing  to-day,  it  will  be  noticed 
that  a  wide  gulf  still  separates  Japan  Irom 
China  in  the  twentieth  century  as  it 
formerly  separated  China  from  the  rest  of 
the  Far  East.  On  the  one  side  there 
is  China,  now  emerging  from  revolution  ; 
on  the  other  there  is  Japan,  voicing  the 
regeneration  of  Asia  with  raucous  tones. 

Meanwhile  the  vast  interests  of  the 
Occident  in  the  Orient  are  united  with 
either  power  by  frequent  political  inter- 
course and  a  traffic  which  has  given  to  the 
Pacific  priority  of  place  in  the  battle  for 
commercial  supremacy.  Yet  while  China 
is  commercially  independent  of  the  West, 
and  Japan  dependent  upon  it,  all  branches 
of  foreign  industry  cannot  but  view  with 
alarm  the  increasing  aggressiveness  of 
the  spirit  of  independence  now  inspiring 
Asia  at  the  prompting  of  Japan.  Obvi- 
ously these  signs  are  the  indication  of 
an  approaching  cleavage  between  East 
and  West,  which,  when  fully  attained, 
will  bear  witness  to  the  complete  severance 
of  the  shackles  hitherto  enthralling  Asia 
to  the  interests  and  purposes  of  the  West, 


It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  Japan 
already  has  achieved  her  complete  re- 
generation. Thirty  years  hence  China, 
no  doubt,  will  have  followed  suit,  when  a 
fedcracy  of  the  Far  Eastern  Powers  may 
become  an  accomplished  fact.  Even  at 
this   moment   such   a   union    is    possible, 

^..  and      its      realisation     would 

China  .,      T- 

-,. .  ,  impose     upon     all     European 

„  Governments    the     immediate 

revision  of  their  Asiatic  policies. 

At  this  time  such  a  combination  is 
hampered  only  by  the  unwillingness  of 
China  to  accept  the  suggestions  of  Japan 
in  anything  affecting  the  policy  of  Asia, 
although,  in  spite  of  this  objection,  active 
reforming  influences  are  gradually  effect- 
ing important  changes  throughout  the 
Chinese  Empire.  For  the  moment, 
therefore,  Japan  is  content  to  tread  alone 
the  path  she  has  marked  out,  encouraging 
her  subjects  by  example  to  exploit  Asia 
for  the  Asiatics,  and  to  secure  recogni- 
tion of  the  doctrine  of  equality  between 
the  white  and  Asiatic  races. 

If  the  full  significance  of  this  move- 
ment is  not  yet  discernible,  there  is  enough 
evidence  to  show  that  the  problem  will 
rank  among  the  greatest  that  the  politics 
of  the  twentieth  century  can  disclose.  Not 
only  one  part  of  the  civilised  globe  will  be 
affected  by  the  rise  of  a  dominant  Asia, 
for  the  whole  world  will  be  confronted 
equally  with  the  necessity  of  resisting 
whatever  indications  may  appear.  If 
it  is  difficult  to  devise  an  arrangement 
short  of  total  exclusion  that  does  not 
admit  an  annual  influx  of  a  large  number 
of  Japanese,  Chinese,  Korean,  or  Indian 
immigrants  into  the  lands  affected  by  this 
invasion,  it  is  at  least  tolerably  certain 
that  if  the  existing  flow  of  Asiatics  across 
the  Pacific  to  America  and  Australasia 
continues  unabated  for  a  further  decade, 
the  areas  now  menaced  will  be  inhabited 
by  a  white  minority. 

It  appears  evident  that  the  continuation 
of  the  Far  East  under  existing  conditions 
is  doubtful,  if  not  impossible,  in 
/th  ^™        view  of  the  awakening  of   Asia 
-,  and     the      visible     prejudices 

en  ury  ^j^^^  Western  democracy  enter- 
tains against  the  Asiatic.  Yet  if  the  clash 
of  conflicting  interests  ultimately  pre- 
cipitates a  struggle  between  the  two 
great  racial  divisions  of  the  world,  there 
can  be  no  doubt  that  the  moral  teachings 
of  humanity  will  be  discredited. 

Angus  Hamilton 

415 


GREAT  DATES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  JAPAN 


B.C. 
660 

A.D. 


59 
"25 

202 
397 


552 
645 
675 
689 

750 
782 
800 

889 


1155 

1186 
1 192 

1220 
•275 

1281 
i333 
•337 


•543 

•549 

1574 
I5«i 
1582 

•583 

•592 

1598 

1606 
1615 
1617 
1621 
1624 

•637 
1641 

1694 
1702 

416 


To    500  A.D. 

Supposed  foundation  of  the  Japanese 
Empire  by  Jimnm 

Emperor  Suinin  flourished.  Abolition 
of  the  practice  of  burying  retainers 
alive  on  the  master's  death 

Reputed  Korean  immigration 

Legendary  hero  Yamato  Dak6 
nourished 

Reputed  conquests  in  Korea  by  Empress 
Jingo  Kogo 

Probable  introduction  of  Chinese  civili- 
sation, through  Korea 

500-1000 

Introduction  of  Buddhism 

The  Taikua  Laws  of  Kotoku 

Encouragement  of  Puddhism  by  Temmu 

The  Laws  reduced  to  a  written  code 

Development  of  the  Samurai  class 

Emperor  Kwammu 

Eusion   of    Shinto   with   Buddhism    by 

Kobu  Daishi 
High  offices  become  hereditary  in  the 

Fujiwara  family 

1000-1500 

Wars    of    the     Taira    and    Minamoto 

clans 
\'ictory  of  the  Minamoto 
The  ^Iinamoto  Shugunate  established. 

Japanese  feudal  system 
Supremacy  of  the  Hojo  family 
Attempt    of    Kublai   Khan    to    invade 

Japan 
Destruction  of   the   Chinese    (Mongol) 

Armada 
Ashikaga  revolt  and  overthrow  of  the 

Hnjr. 
Rival  Mikados  of  the  North  and  South 

for  fifty-five  years 

1 500- 1 800 

First  appearance  of  Europeans  (Portu- 
guese) in  Japan 
Francis   Xavier  attempts  to  introduce 

Christianity 
( )verthrow  of  Ashikaga  by  Nobunaga 
Rapid  development  of  Christianity 
Death  of  Nol)unaga.     Supremacy  of  his 

general  Hideyoshi  (Taiko  Sama) 
Envoys  sent  from  feudal  lords  to  the 

Pope 
Hideyoshi's  invasion  of  Korea 
Death    of     Hideyoshi.      Accession    to 

power  of  lyeyasu 
Prohibition  of  Christianity 
Restoration  of  Minamoto  Shogunate 
Foreign  trade  limited  to  two  ports 
Ja|:)anese  prohibited  from  foreign  travel 
Decreeof  e.xjnilsion  against  all  foreigners 

except  Dutch  and  Chinese 
Peasant  and  Christian  revolt 
Dutch  and  Chinese  restricted  to  Nagasaki 
Development  of  trade-guilds 
Russian  squadron  visits  Japanese  coast 


A.D. 
1804 

1818 
1844 

1848 

•853 
'854 


I8S5 
1856 

•859 
1861 
1862 

•  863 
1864 


1866 
1867 


1868 
18655 


1871 

1872 
•873 

1874 

•875 
1876 
1877 
1879 
1889 


1890 

1894 
1895 
1897 

1899 

1900 
1902 
1904 
'905 


1907 

1910 
1911 


1800-1867 

Russia  attempts  unsuccessfully  to  open 
relations  with  Japan 

Captain  Gordon  at  Yedo  Bay 

Holland  makes  proposals  for  extension 
of  trade 

Visit  of  American  and  French  warships 
to  Japanese  waters 

Conunodore  Perry  in  Yedo  Bay 

First  Japanese  Treaty  with  a  Western 
Power  (U.S.A.)  in  ^Iarch.  First  Treaty 
with  Great  Britain  in  October 

Russian  Treaty 

Dutch  Treaty 

Readmission  of  Christian  missionaries 

Attack  on  British  Legation 

Murder  of  Mr.  Richardson 

Japanese  Embassy  to  the  Treaty  Powers 

Bombardment  of  Kago-shima  by  British 

Bombardment  of  Shimonoseki  by  inter- 
national squadron 

Contest  and  reconciliation  of  the  two 
great  clans  (Sats-cho) 

Kei-ki,  last  Shogun 

New  Conventions  with  Western  Powers 

Accession  of  Mutsu-hito  as  Mikado 

Appointment  of  Europeans :  French 
military  and  British  naval  instructors 

Resignation  of  Shogun  Kei-ki 

1868-1907 

Restoration  of  imperial  power 

The  Emperor  takes  up  residence  at 
Yedo,  re-named  Tokio.  Emperor's 
"  charter"  oath 

The  Daimiyo  surrender  feudal  rights 

Feudalism  abolished 

Establishment  of  religious  toleration 

Adoption  of  Gregorian  Calendar 

Universal  Military  Service 

Saga  rebellion.     Formosan  e.xpedition 

Saghalin  exchanged  for  Kuriles 

Korean  Treaty 

Revolt  and  death  of  Saigo 

Annexation  of  Riu-Kiu  Islands 

Promulgation  of  the  Constitution.  Es- 
tablishment of  local  self-government. 

Anti-foreign  reaction 

First  Imperial  Parliament.  New  civil 
and  commercial  codes 

War  with  China 

X'ictory  over  China.    Formosa  annexed 

Revised  customs  tarifT.  Gold  standard. 
Freedom  of  Press  and  pul)lic  meetings 

New  Treaties  on  terms  of  equality. 
Opening  of  the  whole  country 

P"xi)edition  against  Boxers  in  China 

Anglo- Japanese  agreement 

War  with  Russia 

Victory  over  Russia.  Japan  obtains 
Port  Arthur,  S.  Saghalin,  control  of 
S.  Manchuria,  and  protectorate  of 
Korea 

Anglo-Japanese  alliance 

Franco  Japanese  Agreement 

Russo-Jap;mese  Convention 

Korea  annexed 

Anglo-Ja|)anese  Agreement 


•  -^rnryyis  r^  ifTT^ 


PIHfT?^CT^' 


^ 


JAPAN 


THE  COUNTRY  AND  THE   PEOPLE 

BY    ARTHUR     DIOSY 
THE    EMPIRE    OF    THE    EASTERN    SEAS 


ASIA'S  furthest  outpost  towards  the  vast 
waters  of  the  Pacific  Ocean,  a  long, 
narrow  chain  of  rocky,  volcanic  islands, 
extends  north-east  to  south-west  along  the 
eastern  coast  of  the  mainland,  separated 
from  it  by  the  Sea  of  Japan  and  the  China 
Seas.     A  glance  at  the  map  shows  this 
long  string  of  more  than  three  thousand 
islands  and  islets,  stretching  from  51°  5'. 
the    latitude    of    Shumo-shu,     the     most 
northern  of  the  Kurile  group  of  islands, 
down  to  21°  48',  the  latitude  of  the  South 
Cape    of     Formosa,     a     total 
Length  and   ^^^^^\^  of  nearly  thirty  degrees. 
Breadth  of    j^^    component    parts    extend 
Great  Japan  ^^^^  ^_^o  ^^>  ^^^  longitude,  at 
Shumo-shu,  as  far  westwards  as  119°  20', 
the  position  of  the  extreme  western  islets 
of  the  Pescadores,  or  Hokoto,  archipelago, 
a  distance  of  nearly  thirty-eight  degrees, 
the  total  breadth  of  the  Empire  of  Dai 
Nippon — Great  Japan. 

The  enormous  length  of  the  island 
empire,  the  configuration  of  which  is 
likened  by  the  Japanese  to  the  slender 
body  of  a  dragon-fly,  provides  a  great 
variety  of  climate,  from  the  Arctic  rigour 
of  the  Kurile  Islands  and  the  Siberian 
climate,  with  its  long  and  terrible  winter 
and  its  short  but  fierce  summer,  obtaining 
in  the  larger  northern  islands,  to  the 
sweltering,  steamy  heat  of  Formosa,  the 
tropic  of  Cancer  passing  through  that 
island  and  through  the  Pescadores.   These 

?7  ' 


extreme  temperatures  apart— and  they 
prevail  only  at  the  ends  of  the  empire- 
Japan  possesses  a  temperate  chmate 
similar  to  that  of  the  northern  shores  of 
the  Mediterranean,  but  colder  in  winter 
and  much  damper,  the  excessive  humidity 
causing  both  heat  and  cold  to  be  very 
trving,  though  never  dangerous.  The 
rainfall  is  especially  heavy  in  June  and 
in  September,  but  no  month  is  entnely 
without  rain.  The  hottest  period  of  the 
year  is  called  do-yo,  corresponding  to  our 
''  dog-days,"  and  follows  the  rainy  season 
of  June  and  early  July.  . 

Japan    owes    its    great    humidity,    the 

consequent  fertility  of  such  jxirts  of  its 

surface  as  are  cultivable— about  84-3  per 

cent,  of  the  whole  area  of  Japan  proper 

is  too  rocky  to  yield  food   tor 

What  Japan  ^^j^__^„^   tl^P    luxuriant  ver- 

Owesto        ^^jj.g    ^j^j^^    clothes    the    lower 

its  Position  ^j^j^g^  ^f  j^g  wooded  hills,  to 

its  insular  position,  and,  chiefly,  to  two 

great    factors,    a    current    and    a    wind. 

The   great   warm   current   known   as   the 

Kuro-shio,    the    Black    Brine,    or    Black 

Tide,    flowing    from    the    tropical    region 

between    the    Philipinnos    and    Formosa, 

raises  the  temperature  of  the  east  coast. 

and,  where   it   is    in    part    deflected    by 

contact     with     the     southern     coast     ot 

Kiu-shu,  also  of    the  west  coast,   acting 

in  the  same  beneficent  manner  as  the  Cull 

Stream  of  the  Atlantic     The  wind  that 

417 


Kovstone  View  Co. 

A    GLIMPSE    OF    THE    INLAND    SEA,    THE    LOVELIEST    SHEET    OF    WATER    IN    JAPAN 
Studded  with  hundreds  ol  islands,  every  part  of  the  Inland  Sea  of  Japan,  stretching  240  miles  in  length,  and  widening 
once  to  4(J  miles,  offers  an  enchanting  prospect.    The  islands  occur  often  in  clusters,  giving  the  appearance  of  lakes. 


affects  the  Japanese  climate  most  strongly 
is  the  north-east  monsoon,  tempered  by  the 
action  of  the  dark,  warm,  ocean  current. 

The  geographical  position  of  Japan 
has  had  great  influence  on  the  history 
of  its  people,  and  clearly  indicates  the 
supremely  important  part  the  empire 
is  destined  to  play  in  the  future  develop- 
ment of  the  Far  East.  Its  insular  charac- 
ter has  preserved  it  from  invasion — it 
is  the  proud  and  legitimate  boast  of  the 
Japanese  that  no  foe  has,  within  historical 
times,  trodden  Japanese  soil  for  more 
than  a  few  hours — and  whilst  it  rendered 
possible  the  seclusion  in  which  the  nation 
lived  for  more  than  two  centuries,  develop- 
ing, undisturbed,  a  high  civilisation  of 
its  own,  the  basis  of  many  of  the  qualities 
displayed  by  the  Japanese  in  our  day, 
it  has  been,  in  recent  times,  the  cause  of 
Japan's  real  might  in  the  world — her  sea- 
power,  naval  and  commercial. 

The  map  shows  the  four  principal 
islands  of  Japan  Proper:    Hon-§hu,  or 

418 


Hon-do — "  Principal  Circuit,"  the  largest 
island  of  Japan,  commonly  called  Nippon, 
really  the  name  of  the  whole  empire, 
meaning  "  Sun-origin,"  equivalent  to 
Sunrise  Land ;  Kiu-SHU,  or  Nine  Pro- 
vinces ;  Shi-koku,  or  Four  States ;  and 
the  great  northern  island  of  Yezo,  the 
second  in  size,  officially  termed  Hok- 
kai-do — "  North  Sea  Circuit." 

The  four  islands  extend,  opposite  the 
mainland,  from  the  coast  of  the  Russian 
Maritime  Province,  on  the  north-west, 
down  to  the  southern  extremity  of  the 
Korean  peninsula,  on  the  south-west. 
North  of  Yezo,  facing  the  month  of  the 
great  River  Amur,  the  long,  narrow 
island  of  Saghalin — Karafuto,  in  Japanese 
^^belongs  partly  to  Russia,  partly  to 
Japan,  its  southern  districts,  up  to  the 
fiftieth  degree  of  latitude,  being  ceded  to 
the  victors  by  Article  IX.  of  the  Treaty 
of  Portsmouth  (1905).  Separating  these 
islands-  important  channels  afford  com- 
rnunigation  between  the  Sea  of  Japan  and 


A    CRATER    WITH    EIGHTY    VILLAGES,     IN    WHICH    TWENTY    THOUSAND    PEOPLE    LIVE 
Twenty  thousand   people   live   in    eighty  villages   in    the   outer   crater  of  Aso-san,   probably  the   largest  crater  on 
earth,  competing:,  says  Professor  Milne,  with  some  of  the  great  craters  of  the  moon.     The  crater  of  Aso-san  is  from 
10  to  14  miles  across,  and  its  wall  is  everywhere  2,000  feet  high,  the  highest  peak  being  Taka-dake,  5,«:t(»  feet. 


the  Pacific.  The  Gulf  of  Tartary  divides 
Saghahn  from  the  mainland,  whilst  the 
Strait  of  La  Pcrouse,  or  Strait  of  Tsugaru, 
separates  the  island  from  Yezo.  The 
Straits  of  Korea,  between  that  empire, 
now  under  the  protectorate  of  Japan,  and 
the  main  island,  Hon-shu,  or  Nippon,  are 
the  way  of  communication  joining  the 
Sea  of  Japan  and  the  eastern  part  of  the 
China  Sea,  the  straits  being  divided  into 
three  channels  by  the  island  of  Iki 
and  by  those  of  Tsu-shima,  a  name 
rendered  for  ever  glorious  by  Togo's 
great  victory  on  May  27th,  1905.  The 
various  straits  are  sufficiently  narrow  to 
be  easily  closed  to  an  enemy  by  Japan's 
splendid  fleet. 

Although  Japan  has  remained  immune 
from  invasion  throughout  historical  time, 
its  proximity  to  the  mainland,  and  especi- 
ally to  the  Korean  peninsula,  led,  in  pre- 
historic ages,  to  its  receiving  from  the 
continent   an  influx   of  immigrants  who 


gradually  conquered  the  insular  natives, 
and  whose  descendants  probably  form  the 
main  stock  of  the  present  Japanese  race. 
It  was  this  proximity  that  brought  the 
civilisation  of  China  into  Japan,  in  the 
first  instance  through  Korea  ;  the  same 
route  was  followed  by  another  mighty 
invasion  of  foreign  thought,  the  intro- 
duction of  Buddhism. 

No  country  has  been  better  fashioned 
by  Nature  for  the  acquirement  of  sea- 
power  than  the  Island  Empire  of  the 
Rising  Sun.  Its  enormous  extent  of  coast- 
line, with  countless  indentations,  esj^ci- 
ally  numerous  on  the  south-eastern  coasts 
of  Hon-shij,  Shi-koku,  and  Kiu-shu,  its 
many  excellent  harbours,  naturally  forti- 
fied by  reason  of  the  narrow  entrances  to 
the  gulfs  in  which  they  are  situated — for 
example:  Nagasaki,  in  Kiii-shu,  the  naval 
stations  at  Sasebo,  in  the  same  island. 
Kure,  in  the  Inland  Sea,  and  Yoko- 
suka,  near  Tokio  Bay — and,  above  all,  the 

419 


Keystone  View  Co. 

HAKONE    LAKE    AND    THE    GATEWAY    TO    THE     INARI    TEMPLE    IN    KIOTO 
Hakoni''  Lake,  the  top  picture,  is  a  delightful  summer  resort.    The  bottom  picture,  the  avenue  of  Torn  (portals),  formmg 
the  entrance  to  a  Shinto  Temple  at  Kioto,  is  a  wonderful  sight.     There  are  over  4U0  Torii,  arranged  ni  two  colonnades. 

420 


Keystone  View  Co. 

A    GLIMPSE    OF    THE    BUSY    NAGOYA    CANAL    AND    OF    THE    PARK    AT    KUMAMOTO 
Naeova  is  one  of  the  great  manufacturing  cities  of  Japan,  and  a  busy  canal  links  the  city  with  the  Port  of 
Yokkaiehi      The  park  of  Suijenji,  ia  Kwrnnnoto.  it  a  beautiful  example  of  Japanese  landscape  gardening. 

421 


HISTORY    OF     THE    WORLD 


excellence    of    its    seafaring    population, 

supply  the  elements  that  give  Japan  the 

mastery  in  Far  Eastern  waters. 

In  the  thousands  of  hamlets  nestling  in 

the  bays,  large  and  small,  and  creeks  of  the 

Japanese  islands,  dwells  a  hardy  race  of 

fishermen,  inured  to  peril  and  fatigue,  men 

of  brawny  strength  and  indomitable  pluck, 

-,     ,    .  frugal  and   enduring,  as   fine 

Seafaring  r     •    i    x        xl                   •            r 

^     ,.^.       ,  material  for  the   mannmg   of 

Qualities  of  ,  .               i    .       j-               ?- 

,  warships  and  trading  craft  as 

Japanese  ^,            U     i                      i 

the    world    has   ever    known. 

The  persistence  of  those  seafaring  qualities 
which  the  Japanese  owe  chiefly  to  the 
natural  advantages  of  their  island  home — 
partly,  no  doubt,  to  a  strain  of  the  blood 
of  Malay  sea-rovers,  perhaps  also  of  Poly- 
nesian canoe-men — is  a  remarkable  phe- 
nomenon. In  olden  times  they  were  bold 
seafarers,  roaming  as  far  as  the  Philippines 
and  the  coast  of  Indo-China.  Th6  waters 
of  Formosa  and  of  Siam  were  the  scene 
of  their  piratical  exploits,  for,  like  all 
nations  destined  to  be  great  at  sea,  they 
passed  through  a  period  when  the  spirit 
of  adventure,  as  much  as  the  lust  for 
spoil,  made  them  into  daring  sea-robbers. 
But,  with  the  closing  of  Japan  to  foreign 
intercourse — save  on  a  strictly  limited 
scale — early  in  the  seventeenth  century, 
came  the  enactment  of  laws  devised  to 
prevent  the  Japanese  from  visiting  foreign 
parts  ;  the  tonnage  and  build  of  ships  were 
fixed  by  these  decrees  in  such  a  manner 
that  only  fishing  and  coasting  trips  were 
thenceforward  possible.  This  prohibition 
lasted  for  two  centuries  and  a  half;  yet,  on 
its  removal,  the  germ  of  the  seafaring 
qualities,  supposed  to  have  died  out,  was 
found  to  have  been  only  in  a  state  of 
suspended  animation ;  it  revived  with 
surprising  rai)idity.  In  less  than  a  quarter 
of  a  century  it  produced  a  naval  personnel 
ca])able  of  manning  a  highly  efficient 
fleet  of  thirty-three  sea-going  fighting- 
ships  ;  in  ten  years  more  the  amazed 
world  recognised  Japan's  Navy  as  the 
triumphant  victor  in  the 
,^  greatest  battle  since  Trafalgar, 
and  coupled  Admiral  Togo's 
name  with  that  of  Nelson. 
The  sea  has,  indeed,  ever  been  Japan's 
friend  ;  to  this  day  it  supports  a  large 
number  of  the  population,  and,  in  a  sense, 
it  may  be  said  to  keep  the  whole  nation 
alive,  as  the  fish  that  teem  in  Japanese 
waters  sup]>ly  a  considerable  part  of  the 
people's  food.  Every  marine  product 
available  as  nutriment  is  utilised,  even 
422 


The  Sea 
as  Japan's 
Friend 


seaweed  of  various  kinds  being  largely 
used  as  food.  Fishing  seems  to  have  been 
practised  from  the  earliest  times  ;  it  is 
probably  in  recognition  of  its  antiquity 
and  national  importance  that  the  Japanese 
of  our  day  still  affix  to  any  gift  a  strip  of 
dried  seaweed,  passed  through  a  piece  of 
paper  peculiarly  folded,  the  idea  they  thus 
symbolise  being,  it  is  said  :  "  This  is  but 
a  trumpery  present,  but  it  comes  from  a 
cheerful  giver  ;  be  pleased  to  take  it  as 
it  is  meant.  Remember  our  forefathers 
were  poor  fisherfolk  ;  this  strip  of  seaweed 
is  to  remind  you  that  poverty  is  no 
crime." 

There  are  many  other  customs  connected 
with  the  harvest  of  the  sea,  and  innumer- 
able legends  and  folk-tales  wherein  the 
chief  part  is  played  by  some  marine  spirit 
or  by  a  visitor — deity  or  mortal — to  the 
mysterious  realms  of  the  deep.  And  deep 
it  is,  for,  off  the  eastern  coast  of  Northern 
Japan,  the  sea-bed  falls  abruptly  to  a 
depression — the  famous  Tuscarora  Deep, 
called  after  the  United  States  warship  of 
that  name — of  4,655  fathoms,  nearly 
28,000  ft.,  or  more  than  five  miles,  prob- 
.        ,  ably  the  deepest  sea-bed  in  the 

apans         yyorld.  The  encircling  sea  forms 
Beautiful  ,       ,  f      . 

g  an    important    part    01    most 

^  of  the  beautiful  pictures  the 
scenery  of  Japan  offers  to  the  delighted  eye. 
Whether  the  waves  dash  tumultuously 
against  the  precipitous  rocks  of  the  south- 
eastern side  of  the  main  islands,  especially 
of  Shi-koku  and  Kiii-shu  ;  whether  the 
waters  dance  in  the  sunshine  in  the  count- 
less bays  and  creeks  of  those  coasts  where 
the  frequency  of  the  shelter  afforded  to 
fishing-craft  led  to  an  earlier  and  more 
dense  settlement  than  on  the  north-west 
coast  of  Hon-shii  ;  whether  the  far-famed 
Inland  Sea  shines  like  a  mirror  under  the 
moonbeams,  or  the  Sea  of  Japan  tosses  its 
grey  billows  or  spreads  a  sullen  expanse 
under  the  pall  of  fog  caused  by  the  meeting 
of  warm  and  cold  currents — in  all  its  moods 
the  ocean  forms  part  of  nearly  all  the 
grandest  scenery  of  Japan. 

The  "  Three  Views,"  known  to  every 
Japanese  man,  woman  and  child,  for  they 
are  portrayed  in  countless  pictorial 
representations,  are  sea-scapes.  The  808 
islets  of  Matsu-shima,  with  the  thousand 
trees  from  which  the  group  derives  its 
name  of  Pine  Islands,  are  the  glory  of  the 
province  of  Sen-dai,  in  Northern  Hon- 
shu ;  the  hoary  tori-i,  or  gateway,  of  the 
great  Shin-to  temple  at  the  sacred  island 


SCENES 


JAPAN  AFTER  AN  EARTHQUAKE 


Thereisatleastoneshockofearthquakeeveryday  in  Japan;  there  are  300  shocks  in  a  vear.  As  late  as  1801  an  earthquake 

jailer  ones,    These  photographs  snow  the  havoc  of  such  earthquakes. 


wrecked  two  populous  towns  and  destroyed  two  sma 


423 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


of  Miya-jima,  or  Itsuku-shima — so  holy 
that  no  birth  nor  death  may  take  place 
on  the  island,  and  no  dog  is  allowed  there 
— stands  firmly  amidst  the  very  waves 
of  the  Inland  Sea ;  Ama-no  Hashidate, 
the  "  Sacred  Bridge,"  stretches  its  slender 
two-mile  length  of  sandy  spit,  only  190  ft. 
broad — crowned,  all  along,  with  an  avenue 
of  pine-trees — into  the  blue  waters  of  the 
gulf  of  Miya-zu,  in  the  Sea  of  Japan. 

The  so-called  Inland  Sea,  240  miles  long 
from  its  narrow  western  entrance,  only 
one  mile  across,  between  Shimo-no-seki 
on  the  main  island  and  Mo-ji,  the  busy 
colliery  port  in  Kiu-shii,  to  its  eastern 
extremity,  where  it  joins  the  open  sea 
through  the  Aka-shi  and  Naru-to  Straits 
— it  widens  to  forty  miles  where  the  Bun- 
go  Channel  divides  Shi-koku  from  Kiushu 
— is  perhaps  the  most  lovely  sheet  of 
salt  water  in  the  world.       Studded  with 


many  hundreds  of  islands,  every  part  of 
its  expanse  offers  an  enchanting  prospect, 
the  islets  being  often  in  clusters,  making 
many  stretches  appear  like  lakes. 

Water  enters  into  the  beauty  of  every 
Japanese  landscape  ;  districts  remote  from 
the  sea  have  their  lakes  and  rivers — 
generally  short,  swiftly-flowing  streams, 
almost,  sometimes  quite,  dry  in  summer, 
exposing  beds  of  pebbles,  but  rushing 
torrents  in  the  wet  season, 

Biwa  is  the  largest  lake  in  Japan,  and 
far-famed  for  its  scenery;  its  area  is 
about  the  same  as  that  of  the  Lake  of 
Geneva,  and  it  is  nearly  as  beautiful. 
Lake  Chii-zen-ji,  or  Chu-gu-shi,  is  sur- 
rounded by  luxuriant  verdure  at  an 
altitude  of  4,375  ft.  above  sea-level,  and 
is  surpassed  in  beauty  by  the  smaller 
Lake  Yumoto,  higher  up,  in  the  sulphur- 
springs   region,    5,000    ft.  above  the  sea. 


MODERN  YOKOHAMA:  THE  HARBOUR, 


Keystone  V'kw  Cc 

SEEN    FROM    THE    HEIGHTS    OF    THE    TOWN 


426 


OVERLOOKING     MODERN    TOKIO,    THE    CAPITAL    OF    JAPAN 


There  are  many  other  lovely  lakes  in 
Japan,  Lake  Hakone  amongst  them. 
Those  just  mentioned  are  singled  out 
because  they  lie  in  the  mountainous 
district  round  Nikko,  a  region  on  the  main 
islands,  to  the  north  of  Tokio,  present- 
ing, in  their  greatest  beauty,  character- 
istic features  of  Japanese  inland  scenery 
— imposing  mountains,  stately,  venerable 
trees,  and  grand  waterfalls  comparable  to 
those  of  Norway.  The  aspect  of  the 
Japanese  islands  is,  as  may  be  inferred, 
diversified,  stern  and  rugged  amidst   the 


dark  forests  of  the  north,  smiling  in  the 
sunlit  regions  further  south,  beautiful 
almost  everwhere. 

The  land  is  chiefly  mountainous,  the 
ranges  running  from  south-west  to  north 
east,  interspersed  with  smiling  valleys, 
fertile  plains,  chequered  into  regular 
squares  by  the  narrow,  raised  embank- 
ments dividing  the  rice-fields,  with,  here 
and  there,  wild,  desolate  moors  in  places 
where  even  the  untiring  industry  and 
agricultural  skill  of  the  people  could  not 
induce    the    stubborn    ground    to    yield 

427 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


hr^«,u«?te3iMja>i*ei«m«ni«i .. 


t^z^si^ 


Looking  over  the  Bay  of  808  Islands 


himset  among  the  pine-clad  rocks 


A  natural  arch  I  lu;  w  Imr  (  ,.. 

SCENES    IN     MATSUSHIMA    BAY,    JAPAN 


sustenance.  Where  anything  useful  can 
possibly  be  made  to  grow,  the  Japanese 
grow  it.  Beside  plants  of  utility,  they 
grow,  to  a  greater  extent  than  in  any 
other  land,  plants  intended  only  for 
pleasure,  for  the  delight  they  give  the 
Japanese  eye  by  their  beauty. 

In  no  other  country  are  flowers  so  rever- 
ently admired  as  in  Japan  ;  nowhere  are 
they  more  skilfully  grown  and  tended. 
Every  month  has  a  special  blossom,  and 
what  may  be  termed  its  flower  festival, 
when  the  people,  high  and  low,  rich 
and  poor,  go  in  their  tens  of  thousands 
to  seek  happiness  in  the  contemplation 
of  Nature's  most  dehcate  productions. 
The  plum-blossom  appears  about  a  month 
after  the  New  Year,  and  is  followed  by  the 
far-famed  cherry-flower  early  in  April, 
when,  in  many  ancient  groves  and  on 
many  hillsides,  the  lightest  of  delicate 
clouds,  faintly  pink,  seem  to  have  settled 
on  the  trees. 

No  words  can  do  justice  to  the  exquisite 
beauty  of  Japan  in  cherry-blossom  time  ; 
it  is  then  easily  to  be  understood  how  dear 
the  flower  of  the  cherry  is  to  the  Japanese 
heart.  To  the  people  of  Great  Japan  it  is 
the  emblem  of  patriotism  and  of  chivalry, 
sharing  their  affections  with  the  chry- 
santhemum, the  badge  of  the  empire. 
Other  flowers  grown  to  wonderful  per- 
fection are  the  peony,  symbolical  of 
valour  ;  the  graceful  wistaria,  the  glow- 
ing azalea,  the  slim-stalked  iris,  the 
convolvulus,  or  "  morning-glory,"  in  many 
strange  forms,  and  the  lotus,  the  sacred 
flower  of  Buddhism.  Besides  these  and 
other  cultivated  flowers,  Japan  possesses 
wild  blossoms  galore  that  fleck  its  plains 
and  valleys  with  colour.  The  leaves  of 
the  maple  turn,  in  November,  to  hues  of 
crimson  and  gold,  clothing  the  woods  with 
a  glory  to  be  equalled  only  in  Canada. 

The  natural  beauty  of  Japan  has  un- 
doubtedly fostered  the  aesthetic  taste 
inborn  with  the  Japanese  of  all  classes. 
High  and  low,  they  admire  and  enjoy 
intensely  the  lovely  scenes  amidst  which 
they  dwell.  This  admiration  and  enjoy- 
ment are  strong  incentives  to  their  patriot- 
ism. It  seems  to  them  that  their  beautiful 
country  must  indeed  be  Kaini-no-Kuni, 
"  the  Land  of  the  Gods."  To  travelled 
Occidentals,  the  scenery  of  Japan  suggests, 
in  places,  the  Norwegian  fjords  ;  in  others, 
the  smiling  shores  of  the  Italian  lakes;  at 
some  points  the  coves  of  Devonshire,  the 
rocky   coasts  of   the   Channel  Islands,  or 


428 


THE    EMPIRE    OF    THE    EASTERN    SEAS 


the  pleasant  hills  of  Surrey.  That  these 
impressions  are  correct  is  proved  by  the 
fact  that  Japanese  travellers  who  visit 
any  of  these  places  never  fail  to  recognise 
their  similarity  to  some  favourite  spot  m 
Japan. 

The  "  backbone  "  of  the  southern  halt 
of  the  main  island  and  of  the  whole  island 
of  Shikoku  consists    of  rock,    principally 
primitive    gneiss    and    schists ;    Kiu-shu, 
Yezo  and  the  northern  half  of  the  main 
island  are  partly,  the  Kurile  islands— Chi- 
shima— entirely,  volcanic.      Subterranean 
fires  still  smoulder  in  many  parts  of  Japan, 
many  of  the  mountains  being  volcanoes, 
not  all  of  them  extinct.    Fuji,  the  glorious 
cone  so  dear  to  the  Japanese  heart,  uplift- 
ing its  peak  12.  pS  ft.  from  the  surroundmg 
plain,  is  a  volcano  that  erupted  last   m 
January,  1708.     Fifty-one  volcanoes,  such 
as    Asama    and    Bandai-san    in    Eastern 
Japan,  Aso-san  in  Kiu-shu,  Koma-ga-take 
in  Yezo,  have  been  active  in  recent  years, 
some  of  them,  especially  Bandai-san,  with 
disastrous  results.     Nor  do  only  volcanoes 
threaten    danger    to    the    inhabitants    of 
Japan:    earthquakes  are  frequent— about 
500    shocks    yearly— and    sometimes    ap- 
palhngly  destructive  of  life  and  property. 
The     great     earthquake    in    the    Gifu 
region,  in  the  central  provinces  of  the  main 
island,    on  Octol)er  28th,   1891,  wrecked 
two  po}uilous    towns— Gifu  and  Ogaki — 
completely  destroyed  two  smaller  ones— 
Kasamatsu  and  Takegahana— killed  alxnit 
ten   thousand   people,    and   caused    more 
or  less  severe  wounds  to  nearly  twenty 
thousand.     In    Japanese    earthquakes,    a 
great  part  of  the  destruction  arises  from 
the  innumerable  fires  that  break  out  when 
the  tiimsy  houses— mostly  of  wood,  with 
paper  partitions,  in  sliding  frames,  between 
the   rooms— collapse   through   the  shock, 
scattering  the  glowing  charcoal  from  the 
kitchens  amidst  heai)s  of  highly  inflam- 
mable materials.    Earth-tremors  bring  not 
only  fiery  ruin  in  their  train  ;    they  cause 
at  times  upheavals  of  the  sea  that  work 
stupendous   havoc.      On    the   evening   of 
June  T5th,  1896,  the  north-eastern  coasts 
of  the  main  island  were  overwhelmed  by  a 
so-called  "  tidal  wave."    The  sea,  impelled 
probably  by  a  seismic  convulsion  on  the 
bed  of   the   Northern   Pacific,   rose   in   a 
wave    of    towering    height    and,    rushing 
inland  with  terrific  speed,  engulfed  whole 
districts.      More   than   28,000   lives   were 
lost,  and  more  than  17,000  people  were 
injured. 


gateway  of  Miya-  ima.a  laiiiuus  shinto  shrine 


1  he  VS  hllc  Cu. 

View  of  Fuii-yama  across  Motosu 
THREE     FAMOUS    SCENES     IN    JAPAN 


429 


;.V./ 


'Hfffi^r  / 


^- 


■iatu 


J 


'>-A.og:.,hr. 


IT./,-,i7U. 


East     <'l'    ^■■■■•< 


//." 


.  fai  pel 


--N    I  /tAI  WAJN 

^        /tlM.rt.uJ     !  CFoj-iI««)SI») ... 


,c? 


120 


rr 


^/„,ft,;  :.J..,,T 


MAP    OF    THE    ISLAND    EMPIRE    OF    JAPAN 


432 


JAPAN    AND 

ITS 

PEOPLE— II 


QUALITIES    OF    THE    JAPANESE    PEOPLE 


IT  is  in  presence  of  great  calamities  that 
the  best  qualities  of  the  Japanese 
masses  shine  brilUantly.  Their  resignation, 
their  patient  endurance,  the  al'iruism  that 
prompts  them  to  mutual  help  and  to 
countless  acts  of  kindness  ;  their  self-sacri- 
ficing bravery  in  the  work  of  rescue,  the 
proud  honesty  with  which  they  will  con- 
tent themselves  with  the  barest  pittance, 
when  relief  is  distributed,  so  that  enough 
may  be  left  for  others  in  greater  need — 
these  are  only  some  of  the  fine  character- 
istics of  the  wonderful  islanders 
whose  achievements  in  recent 
Wonderful  ^-^^^^  ^^^^  earned  the  respect- 
Islanders  ^^^  admiration  of  the  world, 
even  of  their  late  foes.  There  is,  of  course, 
another  aspect  of  their  character;  they 
are  not  without  some  of  the  vices  and 
failings  human  nature  is  heir  to.  An 
attempt  is  made,  later  in  these  pages, 
to  describe  their 
moral  and  mental 
characteristics,  and 
in  so  doing  to 
hold  the  scales  im- 
partially. 

According  to  the 
census  of  1913  there 
were  52,985423 
subjects  of  the 
Emperor  of  Japan 
(excluding  Korea), 
and  their  number 
is  increasing  steadily 
and  rapidly.  The 
number  of  males 
exceeds  that  of 
females  by  well- 
nigh  a  million. 
The  population  is 
very  dense  in  the 
fertile  regions,  and 
increases  so  rapidly 
that  emigration  is  absolutely  necessary. 
The  masses  are  healthy  and  strong, 
capable  ot  great  endurance — a  fact  brought 
into  striking  prominence  by  the  achieve- 
ments of  the  Japanese  forces  in  the  Arctic 
winter    of    Manchuria,  and   in  its  torrid 

28 


A  Race 

of  Little 
People 


THE    RISING    GENERATION 


summer.  The  Japanese  can,  as  a  rule, 
bear  cold  much  better  than  heat.  Living 
thinly  clad  in  unwarmed  houses  that  offer 
but  little  protection  and  are  by  day 
draughty  as  bird-cages,  they  early  become 
inured  to  cold.  The  average  physique  of 
the  upper  classes  is  by  no  means  so  good 
as  that  of  the  manual  workers,  and  is  con- 
siderably below  the  Occidental  standards. 
The  Japanese  are  a  black-haired  race, 
with  smooth  skins,  varying  in  colour 
through  various  yellowish  shades,  from 
a  hue  of  brown,  in  the  case  of 
those  working  in  the  sun,  to  a 
light  tint  no  darker  than  that 
of  the  Southern  European,  with 
comparatively  large  skulls,  prominent 
cheek-bones,  and  a  tendency  to  project- 
ing jaws.  They  are  of  small  stature,  the 
average  height  of  the  male  being  only 
slightly  over  five  feet  (5*02  ft.),  that  of 
the  female  slightly 
over  four  feet  si.x 
inches  (4"66  ft.).  In 
other  words,  the  men 
are  of  about  the  same 
average  stature  as 
European  females, 
the  women  propor- 
tionately shorter. 

There  are,  of 
course,  exceptions, 
some  Japanese  being 
of  a  height  that 
would  cause  them 
to  be  considered 
tall  amongst  Occi- 
dentals ;  but  they 
appear  as  giants 
amongst  their  dimi- 
nutive compatriots.. 
Both  men  and 
women  have  small 
hands  and  feet,  those 


...1  A  I  h.iciwuod 

JAPAN 


of  the  upper  classes  being  beautifully 
shaped.  Even  amongst  manual  workers 
it  is  not  rare  to  find,  especially  amongst 
females,  hands  of  an  aristocratic  type. 
The  shapely  appearance  of  the  feet  is 
often  spoiled   by  thick   ankles,  probably 

433 


THE    CHILDREN'S    FESTIVAL:    FEAST    OF    DOLLS    IN    A    JAPANESE     HOME 
Japan  is  the  land  of  love  for  children,  and  many  quaint  customs  are  observed  for  their  sake.     On  the  third  day  of  the 
third  month  in  each  year  the  Feast  of  Dolls  is  held  in  thousands  of  Japanese  homes,  and  the  day  is  one  of  great  delight. 


The  Two 
Types  of 
Japanese 

directly 


the  result  of  wearing  sandals.  The  black 
hair  is  abundant  on  the  head,  straight 
and  coarse  ;  there  is  hardly  any  on  the 
arms,  legs  and  chest.  The  eyelashes  are 
scanty,  and  grow  immediately  out  of  the 
eyelids,  without  the  "  hem  "  that  borders 
the  eyelids  of  Occidental  races.  The  eyes 
are  dark,  full  in  the  broad-faced,  plebeian 
type,  narrow  in  the  aristocratic  cast 
of  countenance.  In  the  latter  they  are 
generally  set  more  or  less  obliquely, 
their  slanting  appearance  being 
enhanced  by  the  fact  that  the 
aperture  for  the  eye  seems  to 
have  been  cut,  as  it  were, 
in  the  smooth  skin,  tightly 
stretched  over  the  upper  part  of  the  face, 
not,  as  in  the  white  races,  in  a  very 
marked  depression  under  the  brow. 

There  are  two  plainly  distinct  types  in 
the  nation.  The  majority  are  "  stocky," 
rather  squat  people,  with  broad,  round 
faces,  rather  thick  hps  and  flat  noses ; 
the  minority,  of  the  aristocratic  type, 
are  more  slenderly  built,  with  long  oval 
face  and  aquiline  nose.  In  both  types 
the  trunk  is  long  as  compared  with  the  legs, 
their  shortness  being  probably  due,  in 
some  measure,  to  the  national  habit  of 
sitting  on  the  floor,  in  a  kneeling  jiosture, 
the  weight  of  the  body  being  thrown  back 
<;n  to  the  heels.     Sitting  on  benches,  as 

434 


in  school  and  in  barracks,  necessitated 
by  the  introduction  of  Western  educa- 
tional and  military  methods,  has  some- 
what improved  the  proportions  of  the 
Japanese  body  in  this  respect.  ■  The 
admirable  gymnastic  training  given  in  the 
schools  to  children  of  both  sexes,  and, 
still  more,  the  naval  or  mihtary  service 
to  which  every  able-bodied  Japanese 
adult  male  is  liable,  have  done  wonders 
in  improving  the  physique  of  the  nation. 
Statistics  collected  by  the  Army  Medical 
Department  clearly  show  that  the  race 
is  gradually  growing  taller  since  the  intro- 
duction of  universal  service.  The  Japanese 
grow  to  maturity  more  rapidly  than 
Occidentals ;  they  also  age  earlier.  As 
in  other  countries,  very  old 
women  are  more  numerous 
than  very  aged  men.  Both 
the  slender,  often  weakly, 
upi^er  classes  and  the  stout  plebeians  are 
nimble  in  their  movements,  have  supple 
limbs  and  remarkal)ly  skilful  fingers. 
The  workers  use  their  toes  to  hold  and 
steady  the  material  on  which  they  are  at 
work,  often  sitting  at  their  labour  where 
Occidentals  would  stand.  The  great 
toe  is  well  separated  from  the  others, 
owing  to  the  effect  of  the  loop  of  cord 
passing  between  them  to  secure  the 
sandal  to  the  foot,  the  tabi,  or  sock,  QJ 


Physique 
of  (he 
Nation 


QUALITIES    OF    THE   JAPANESE    PEOPLE 


cotton-cloth  being  made  with  a  separate 
compartment  for  the  great  toe.  The  skin 
of  the  whole  body  is  generally  of  satin- 
like smoothness,  owing,  no  doubt,  to  the 
very  hot  baths — at  a  temperature  of 
about  110°  F. — in  which  all  Japanese 
indulge  at  least  once  a  dav, 
Cleanest  ^j^^^^  maintaining  their  well- 
Nation  in  ,  J  .  "  •  ,, 
.    y.    . .     deserved     reputation    as    the 

cleanest  nation  in  the  world. 
To  the  Occidental  eye,  the  majority  of 
Japanese  men  are  not  comely,  although 
there  are  notable  exceptions,  presenting 
fine  faces,  of  noble  and  intellectual  type. 
The  women  are  often  very  pretty,  judged 
by  the  Occidental  standard ;  they  are 
nearly  always  graceful  and  charming, 
owing  to  their  exquisite  manners  and 
gentle  voice.  The  chief  element  in.  their 
charm  is  undoubtedly  their  perfect 
femininity.  There  is  absolutely  nothing 
masculine  about  their  ways  or  their 
speech,  yet,  when  the  need  arises,  they 
are  capable  of  courage  and  self-sacrifice 
that  places  them  on  the  same  high 
level  as  their  heroic  fellow-countrymen. 
It  may  safely  be  asserted  that  there 
are  no  more  dutiful  wives,  no  better 
mothers.  There  are  certainly  no  daughters 
with   a   greater   sense    of    filial    piety,    a 


virtue  that  forms  the  basis  of  family  life 
in  Japan. 

Throughout  the  Far  East  the  whole  social 
fabric  is  based  on  the  family  ;  the  whole 
state  is,  indeed,  considered  as  one  great 
family,  with  the  Emjieror  at  its  head.  It  is 
the  mothers  who  train  Japanese  children 
from  infancy  in  the  spirit  of  reverence  and 
obedience  to  parents  and  elders  in  the 
family  circle,  and  to  the  Emperor  as  the 
supreme  chief  of  the  great  national 
family.  And  well  do  the  children  assimi- 
late the  lessons  of  obedience  and  devotion 
so  carefully  inculcated  by  the  mother, 
for  there  are  none  more  docile  than  the 
boys  and  girls  of  Japan,  whose  respectful, 
courteous  manners,  not  only  towards 
their  parents,  but  towards  elder  brothers 
and  sisters,  earn  the  admiration  of  Occi- 
dentals. The  chief  qualities  of  the  Japanese 
race  are  patriotism  —which 
is,  with  them,  synonymous 
with  loyalty — courage,  filial 
piety,  and  cleanliness.  In 
love  of  country,  in  self-sacrifice  for  the 
common  weal,  in  loyalty  to  the  sovereign 
— with  them  a  cult — in  reckless  gallantry, 
and  in  bodily  cleanliness,  the  Japanese 
surpass  all  other  nations  of  our  time.  It 
may  be  truly  said  that  patriotism  is  their 


The  Chief 
Qualities  of 
the  Race 


THE    VARIOUS    GRADES    OF    SOCIETY    IN    OLD    JAPAN 
Society  in  Old  Japan  was  based  on  the  principle  tliat  tlie  producer  was  worthy  of  high  honour.     There  were  four 
great  classes.    At  the  top  were  the  Shi,  the  nobility  and  gentry,  warriors,  administrators,  and  scholars.  Next  were  the 
No,  the  agricultural  class  ;  thirdly  came  the  Ko,  craftsmen  and  artists  ;  and  at  the  bottom  were  the  Sho,  traders  and 
bankers.    Some  of  the  wealthier  classes  were  thus  at  the  bottom,  because  they  were  not  producers  but  only  circulators. 

435 


The  Royal  Mail  in  Old  Japan 


LIFE    AND    WORK     IN     OLD    JAPAN:      SOME    TYPES     IN    THE    ANCIENT    CAPITAL 


436 


Lady  in  walking  costume 


— ^ i-aoy  in  waiKinf 

SOME    TYPES    IN    OLD    JAPAN:    CHIEFLY    DEPICTED    BY    NATIVE    ARTISTS 


437 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


WINTER 


JAPAN 


JAPANESE  ARTIST 


real  religion  ;  it  inspires  their  magnificent 
courage  in  war,  on  land  and  sea ;  it 
supplies  the  incentive  of  their  lives  in 
times  of  peace,  all  merely  personal  con- 
siderations being  subordinate  to  this 
passionate  national  feeling. 

The  people  of  Japan  are  distinguished, 
besides,  by  quick  intelligence,  a  remark- 
able power  of  observation — derived,  no 
doubt,  from  their  close  study  of  Nature, 
of  which  they  are  devoted  lovers — by  a 
mastery  of  detail,  and  a  very  retentive 
memory,  fostered  by  the  system  of  learn- 
ing by  rote  imported  from  China,  together 
with  the  writing  by  means  of  ideographic 
signs,  necessitating  the  memorising  of 
thousands  of  characters  standing  for 
words.  In  politeness  they  stand  first 
amongst  the  nations,  every  incident  of 
life  being  attended  by  strictly-defined 
rules  of  social  etiquette,  observed  by  all, 
not  only,  as  in  Occidental  countries, 
by  the  more  highly  educated  classes. 
Their  courtesy,  though  often  degenerating 

4J8 


into  mere  hollow  formality,  is 
based  on  a  kindly  regard  for  the 
feelings  of  others,  a  generous 
altruism  and  a  consequent  depre- 
ciation of  self.  They  are  hospitable 
and  open-handed,  the  giving  of  pre- 
sents attending  numerous  festivals 
and  many  occasions  in  social  Hfe. 

Schooled  from  babyhood  by  the 
rules  of  their  rigid  etiquette,  Japan- 
ese, young  and  old,  of  all  classes, 
are  remarkably  quiet  in  their  de- 
meanour, the  higher  ranks  being 
extremely  dignified  in  manner,  and 
completely  concealing  their  feelings 
under  an  imperturbable  mask. 
They  bear  pain,  both  physical  and 
mental,  with  Spartan  stoicism,  their 
nerves  being  much  less  easily  ex- 
cited than  those  of  Occidentals,  so 
that  they  have  often  been  described 
as  "  a  nation  without  nerves." 
Their  apparent  contempt  for  death 
arises  chiefly  from  the  fact  that,  to 
most  of  them,  the  passing  out  of 
this  world  does  not  imply  a  total 
severance  from  mundane  interests, 
their  general  belief  being  that  the 
spirits  of  the  departed  have  cogni- 
sance of  the  doings  of  those  they 
leave  behind.  This  idea,  insepar- 
able from  the  ancestor-worship  that 
has  prevailed  amongst  them  from 
time  immemorial,  and  still  prevails, 
was  well  exemplified  in  their  great 
struggle  with  Russia,  their  forces  being 
buoyed  up  by  the  conviction  that  the 
spirits  of  all  the  warriors  who  had  died 
for  Japan  were  fighting  side  by  side  with 
their  gallant  successors. 

The  lov^e  of  the  beautiful  in  Nature, 
common  to  all  members  of  the  Japanese 
race,  is  probably  one  of  the  chief  factors 
in  the  artistic  feeling  so  highly  developed 
among  all  classes.  Their  appreciation  of 
beauty  of  form  and  colour,  their  exquisite 
sense  of  appropriateness  in  decoration, 
the  delicate  restraint  so  evident 

xlste  of  the  ^"  ^^^^  productions  of  their 
*^  *  °  wonderfully  skilful,  patient 
**  "*  *  artist-craftsmen,  are  too  well 
known  to  require  more  than  passing 
mention.  Even  their  commonest  house- 
hold utensils  are  beautiful  in  shape,  elegant, 
and  well  adapted  to  their  purpose.  Their 
innate  good  taste  has  added  a  delicate  re- 
finement to  the  vigorous  art  they  received, 
in  early  times,  from  China,  chiefly  by 
way  of  Korea.     Their  aesthetic  perception 


QUALITIES    OF    THE    JAPANESE    PEOPLE 


enables  even  the  poorest  Japanese 
to  derive  intense  pleasure  from  the 
contemplation  of  the  beautiful, 
thus  providing  them  with  many 
delights  unknown  to  the  vast 
majority  of  modern  Occidentals. 
Combined  with  the  simplicity  and 
frugality  of  their  lives,  and  with 
their  naturally  contented  spirit,  it 
would  seem  to  have  enabled  the 
Japanese  to  solve  the  great  problem 
"  how  to  be  happy,  though  poor." 

A  nation  possessing,  to  a  high 
degree,  the  virtues  and  qualities 
just  enumerated  would  appear  to 
be  living  in  a  perfect  Utopia. 
There  is,  however,  shade  in  the 
picture  as  well  as  bright  light.  This 
happy,  contented,  smiling  people, 
pre-eminent  in  domestic  virtues, 
industrious,  fond  of  learning,  easily 
governed,  gentle  in  manners  and 
speech,  capable  of  rising,  in 
moments  of  national  emergency, 
to  admirable  heights  of  patriotic 
heroism  and  self-sacrifice,  is,  after 
all,  human,  and  consequently 
tainted  with  some  of  the  vices  and 
many  of  the  defects  inherent  in 
human  nature.  The  defects  of  the 
Japanese  character  are,  to  a  great 
extent,  inseparable  from  their  very 
virtues  and  good  qualities  in  their 
extreme  manifestations.  Their  in- 
tense patriotism  is  the  cause  of  the 


LADY    AT    HER    TOILET  :    BY    A    JAPANESE    ARTIST 


anti-foreign  spirit  still,  unfortunately,  rife 
amongst  them.  Their  country  is  to  them 
"  the  Land  of  the  Gods,"  their  riation  the 
Elect  People,  living  under  the  special 
protection  of  Heaven,  whose  blessings  are 
transmitted  to  them  by  the  benevolence  of  a 
superhuman  sovereign,  directly  descended, 
in  unbroken  line,  from  the  Sun  Goddess. 

With  this   belief  firmly  rooted    in    the 

minds  of  the  great  majority  of  the  people, 

it  is  no  wonder  that  all  those  who  have 

not  the  good  fortune  to  be  born  Japanese 

appear   to   them   not    only  as 

a  lona        foreigners,     but     as     Gentiles. 

Pride   of  the    T,,         ^     .       ,    '  r     -KJ  T 

,  Ihe  statesmen  of  New   lapan 

Japanese  ,  .      ,,     .  ^    ' 

are  profuse  in  their  assurances 

that  it  is  the  desire  of  their  people  to 
form  a  unit,  on  terms  of  equality,  in 
the  great  family  of  nations. 

This  assurance  is  echoed  by  many 
Japanese  writers ;  it  is  in  accordance 
with  the  spirit  of  the  tolerant,  all-embrac- 
ing, gentle  Buddhist  faith,  brimming  over 
with  sympathy  for    all  living   creatures  ; 


it  is  also  in  agreement  with  the  calm, 
placid  tenets  of  the  Chinese  philosophy 
that,  with  Buddhism,  has  to  such  a  great 
extent  moulded  the  thought  of  Japan. 
Yet  those  statesmen  and  writers  know 
full  well  that  in  this  respect  neither 
Buddhism,  nor  Chinese  philosophy,  nor 
the  cosmopolitan  spirit  of  the  middle 
period  of  the  nineteenth  century,  nor 
the  brotherhood  of  man  inculcated  by 
true  Christianity,  has  succeeded,  to  any 
appreciable  degree,  in  causing  the  Japanese 
to  look  upon  foreigners  as  brothers,  or 
even  on  the  same  plane  with  their  own 
heaven-descended  race. 

The  reckless  bravery  of  the  Japanese, 
their  contempt  for  death,  are  closely 
related  to  the  slight  value  they  set  upon 
human  life  and  to  the  national  delight 
in  tales  of  bloodshed.  Co-existent  with 
the  mildness  of  their  manners  and  the 
placid  tenor  of  their  domestic  life, 
there  is  found,  deep  in  Japanese  hearts, 
a   wild    delight    in   carnage,    the   legacy, 

439 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


JAPANESE    ON    A    PILGRIMAGE 

naturally  most  cherished  amongst  those 
of  the  warrior  class,  of  centuries  of 
internecine  warfare.  The  sword,  "  the 
living  soul  of  the  Samurai,"  is  still  held  in 
reverence  as  the  instrument  not  only  of 
national  defence  against  the  foreign  foe, 
'but  of  vengeance  and  of  the  chastisement 
of  one  looked  upon  by  the  wielder  of  the 
weapon  as  an  enemy  to  the  State.  Hence 
the  indulgence  with  which  political 
assassination  is  still  regarded  by  the 
masses  in  Japan.  As  the  brutal  instincts, 
inherited  from  primeval  ancestors,  often 
become  manifest  in  an  English-speaking 
crowd  watching  a  football  match  or  a 
boxing  contest,  so,  in  Japan,  the  old 
savagery  reveals  itself,  time  and  again,  at 
fencing  bouts,  the  excited  cries  of  the 
combatants  recalling  the  bad,  wild  days 
of  yore. 

This  fierce  spirit  seems  incompatible 
with  the  noble  generosity  towards  prisoners 
of  war,  and  the  tender  care  of  the  enemy's 
wounded  and  sick,  that  redounded  to  the 
glory  of  the  Japanese  in  both  their  great 
struggles  in  our  time,  the  wars  against 
China  and  against  Russia.  It  is  difficult 
to  believe  that  savagery  can  survive  in 
the  breasts  of  people  capable  of  organising 
such  an  admirable  institution  as  the  Red 
Cross  Society  of  Japan,  whose  noble  work, 
in  war  and  peace,  is  one  of  the  chief  glories 
of  New  Japan  ;  but  it  must  be  remem- 

440 


bered  that  the  young  Great  Power  still 
feels  itself  to  be  undergoing  probation 
under  the  eyes  of  an  observant  and  critical 
world.  The  natural  instinct  of  the  Japan- 
ese warrior  would  lead  him  utterly  to 
destroy  the  foe  who  dared  to  oppose  his 
Emperor's  will,  and  it  requires  the  appli- 
cation of  the  most  severe  discipline  to 
make  him  understand  that  on  his  exercise 
of  humane  forbearance  to  the  vanquished 
depends,  to  a  great  extent,  his  nation's 
good  repute  among  the  Powers. 

This  desire  to  stand  well  in  the  opinion 
of  foreign  nations  has  been  so  thoroughly 
inculcated  in  the  people  of  New  Japan 
that  every  individual  brought  into  contact 
with  foreigners  beyond  'the  boundaries  of 
his  native  land  feels  that  the  honour  of 
Japan  is  dependent  on  his  behaviour, 
even  in  minute  particulars.  Hence  the 
high  reputation  for  excellent  conduct 
enjoyed  by  Japanese  students  and  others 
residing,  or  travelling,  abroad. 

The  altruism  and  self-effacement,  born 
of  the  family  system,  fostered  by  the 
division  of  the  nation  into  clans — now 
officially  abohshed,  but  still  binding  huge 
groups  of  families  with  strong  ties — and 
culminating  in  the  most  complete  devo- 
tion to  the  head  of  the  national  family, 
the  Emperor,  are  the  causes  of  a  peculiar 
defect  in  the  Japanese  character — the 
lack  of  individualitv.     Tt  may  be  said  of 


A    FISH    HAWKER    IN    JAPAN 


QUALITIES    OF    THE    JAPAJ^SE    PEOPLE 


the  Japanese  that,  on  most  important 
matters,  they  feel  and  think  by  milhons. 
The  whole  system  of  their  civilisation 
tends  to  make  individual  effort  subser- 
vient to  the  common  cause  ;  the  reverence 
and  obedience  inculcated  from  early 
childhood  are  not  likely  to  develop  the 
spirit  of  individuality.  Hence  the  wonder- 
ful facility  with  which  the  Japanese 
combine  to  carry  out  any  policy  they 
recognise  as  needful  for  the  public  welfare 
once  that  course  has  been  clearly  indicated 
by  their  trusted  leaders 
as  one  that  has  the 
Emperor's  approval. 

Japan  is,  for  this 
reason,  the  land  where 
leagues,  unions,  guilds, 
trusts  and  "combines" 
work  with  astonishing 
efficiency,  such  institu- 
tions being,  by  their  very 
nature,  well  suited  to 
the  national  character. 
There  are,  of  course, 
exceptional  Japanese 
who  chafe  under  the  re- 
pression of  their  strong 
individuality;  these  occa- 
sionally break  through 
the  national  custom  and 
strike  out  an  indepen- 
dent line.  Their  fate  is 
not  encouraging  to  those 
who  might  be  tempted 
to  follow  their  example. 
Public  opinion  reproves 
them,  and  they  are  soon 
made  to  feel  that  their 
conduct  is  looked  upon 
as  anti-national.  Those  amongst  them  who 
will  not  bow  their  heads  to  the  popular 
verdict,  and  refuse  to  be  reduced  to  the 
level  at  which  the  nation  strives  to  keep 
the  individual,  soon  find  life  in  their  own 
country  unbearable.  In  various  cities  of 
Europe,  still  more  in  those  of  North 
America,  such  Japanese  individualists  may 
be  found  living  in  self-imposed  exile, 
shunned  by  their  compatriots,  until  the 
day,  which  comes  to  most  of  them,  when 
they  submit  and  go  home  to  resume  their 
place  in  the  ranks  of  a  nation  that  abhors 
eccentricity  and  expects  every  man  to  fit 
into  his  proper  groove  in  the  great  national 
machine. 

The  mental  activity  of  the  Japanese, 
their  respect  for  knowledge  and  for  all 
intellectual     pursuits,     causing    them    to 


A    PEASANT    IN 
(Made  of 


admire  keen  wits  and  exercise  of  brain- 
power, have  probably  contributed  in  a 
large  measure  to  form  one  of  the  traits 
in  their  character  that  is  repellant  to 
Occidentals — their  inclination  to  be  cun- 
ning and  deceitful.  In  spite  of  the  high 
and  pure  ideals  of  their  chivalry,  they 
have  not  our  loathing  for  deceit,  our  con- 
tempt for  chicanery,  our  respect  for  the 
truth.  A  Japanese  convicted  of  an  untruth 
merely  conceals  his  annoyance  at  being 
found  out  by  a  smile,  sometimes  by  a 
laugh,  and  is  not  deterred 
rom  another  statement 
at  variance  with  facts 
should  he  consider  it  use- 
ful to  make  one.  Low  cun- 
ning is  frequently  looked 
ujion  as  cleverness  ;  the 
suppression  of  facts  is  so 
common  that  there  is 
no  other  country  where 
it  is  so  difficult  to  arrive  at 
the  truth.  The  national 
failing  of  intense  secre- 
tiveness  arises,  no  doubt, 
from  the  suspicious 
nature  of  the  people,  who 
distrust  not  only  all 
foreigners,  but  even  most 
of  their  own  race — a  con- 
dition of  mind  due,  to  a 
great  extent,  to  the 
widely^  ramified  system 
of  spying  that  flourished 
during  the  rule  of  the 
Tokugawa  Shoguns,  and 
still  exists  to  a  lesser 
degree. 

Their  infinite  capacity 
for  attention  to  the  most  minute  details 
leads  to  a  certain  pettiness,  a  disinclination 
to  consider  great  abstract  questions,  and, 
consequently,  to  a  narrowness  of  view  that 
accounts  for  some  of  the  blunders  which 
occur  in  the  execution  of  the  otherwise 
marvellously  efficient  policy  of  the  rulers 
of  Japan. 

The  exquisite  pohteness  of  the  Japanese 
is  responsible  for  a  great  part  of  that 
insincerity  with  which  they  are  taxed  by 
Occidentals  who  have  been  much  in' 
contact  with  them.  This  extreme  courtesy 
makes  them  so  anxious  to  avoid  any  s})eech 
that  might  possibly  give  offence  that  they 
frequently  distort  the  truth,  suppress  it 
entirely,  or  replace  it  by  pohte  fiction, 
intended  to  give  pleasure.  It  should  be 
remembered  that,  in  the  knightly  times  of 

441 


A    RAI.M    CLOAK 
straw.) 


THE    END    OF    A    JAPANESE    FEAST:     BRINGING    IN    THE    SEA-BREAM 


old — they  continued  until  the  early  'seven- 
ties of  the  nineteenth  century— a  Japanese 
had  to  be  very  guarded  in  his  speech  and 
demeanour  ;  quite  unintentionally,  a  word 
lightly  sf)oken,  an  incautious  gesture, 
might  give  dire  offence  to  a  Samurai — one 
of  the  gentry,  privileged  to  wear  two 
swords — who  would  be  quick  to  resent  the 
fancied  slight  to  his  punctilious  sense  of 
personal  dignity.  Insults,  real,  and  often 
imaginary,  were  wiped  out  with  blood. 
--  ,  Hence  the  endeavour  to  avoid 

Manners  of  -<  i  /■       fc 

.1.    u      u.    ^iny  possible  cause  of  offence, 

the  Haughty  f     -^  .f  iU    x  j 

„  .        lor  the  same  reason  that  made 

Samurai         _ 

Europeans  very  circumspect  in 

their  behaviour  in  the  days  when  gentle- 
men wore  swords  and  drew  them  on 
small  provocation. 

To  such  a  pitch  was  punctilio  carried 
amongst  Japanese  gentlemen  until  quite 
recent  times  that  they  preferred  death, 
inflicted  by  their  own  hands  in  the  most 
painful  manner — by  self-disembowelment, 
or  hara-kiri,  more  elegantly  termed  sep- 
puku,  or  "  self-immolation  " — to  living  with 
a  stain  on  their  honour,  such  stain  being 
often  merely  inability  to  disprove  a  slander- 
ous imputation.  To  this  day,  the  Japanese 
remain  the  most  acutely  sensitive  people  on 
the  point  of  honour ;  so  "  touchy  "  are  they 
that  friendly  intercourse  with  Occidentals 
is  thereby  rendered  extremely  difficult. 

442 


What  places  an  additional  bar  to  perfect 
cordiality  in  such  relations  is  the  deplor- 
able fact  that  an  Occidental  may  un- 
wittingly give  grave  offence  to  a  Japanese 
without  the  latter  giving  any  sign  of  dis- 
pleasure at  the  time.  Allowance  is  seldom 
made  for  the  perfectly  unintentional  error 
on  the  part  of  the  offender,  whilst  the 
grievance  is  allowed  to  rankle,  is  rarely 
forgiven,  and  never  forgotten.  Where  an 
Occidental  would  certainly  call  his  friend's 
attention  to  the  fact  that  he  was  dis- 
pleased by  some  remark  or  action  that 
would,  no  doubt,  be  promptly  atoned  for 
by  a  sincere  apology,  thus  terminating  the 
incident,  the  Japanese  says  nothing.  He 
nurses  his  resentment,  sometimes  for 
years,  until  a  fitting  opportunity  presents 
itself  to  avenge  the  real,  or  fancied,  wound 
to  his  feelings  by  some  particularly  un- 
pleasant action  directed  against  the  Occi- 
dental, all  unconscious  of  his  offence. 

This  unfortunate  peculiarity  of  the 
Japanese  character  is  the  outcome  of  two 
main  currents  that  run  through  the 
national  temperament — the  spirit  of  se- 
crecy, already  alluded  to,  and  the  thirst 
for  revenge.  The  latter,  possibly  due  to 
the  strain  of  Malay  blood  in  the  much- 
mixed  Japanese  race,  is  one  of  the  chief 
stumbling-blocks  hindering  the  introduc- 
tion of  Christianity,  and   has   prevented 


QUALITIES    OF    THF    JAPANESE    PEOPLE 


Buddhism,  also  a  religion  teaching  meek- 
ness, from  obtaining  a  complete  hold  on  the 
people.  In  its  petty  forms,  this  spirit  of 
long-cherished  spite  is  merely  annoying  ; 
in  its  extreme  manifestations  it  becomes 
exceedingly  dangerous. 

It  may  be  thought  that  the  admirable 
magnanimity  displayed  by  the  Japanese 
towards  the  vanquished  in  their  wars 
with  China  and  with  Russia  affords  evi- 
dence that  the  old  spirit  of  revenge 
is  dying  out.  Unfortunately,  it  is  as 
strong  as  ever,  the  explanation  of  the 
apparent  anomaly  being  that,  in  both 
cases,  the  foe  was  vanquished,  and  thus 
became,  according  to  the  principles  of 
Japanese  chivalry,  an  object  for  mercy 
and  compassion.  As  long  as  the  opponent 
resists,  or  refuses  to  surrender  at  the  mercy 
of  the  conqueror,  he  is  implacably  at- 
tacked ;  the  moment  he  has,  metaphoric- 
ally speaking,  grovelled  and  placed  the 
victor's  foot  on  his  head,  he  is  raised  from 
the  ground  and  treated  with  the  greatest 
consideration. 

This  applies  not  only  to  warfare,  but 
to  those  incidents  in  civil  hfe,  already 
alluded  to,  in  which  a  Japanese  considers 
himself  aggrieved,  especially  when  the 
offender   is   a   foreigner.     In   such   case'-, 


humble  apology  for  the  slight,  however 
unintentional — in  fact,  an  attitude  amount- 
ing to  "  I  do  not  know  what  I  have  done 
to  offend  ;  but,  in  any  case,  I  own  I  am 
in  the  wrong,  and  promise,  with  sincere 
apologies,  not  to  offend  again;  deal 
with  me  as  you  think  fit,"  would  generally 
ensure  the  restoration  of  good  relations, 
provided  the  apology  be  sufficiently  public 
to  gratify  the  self-esteem  of  the  Japanese. 
It  is  hardly  to  be  expected  that  a 
self-respecting  Occidental  would  demean 
himself  thus  to  atone  for  an  error  un- 
consciously committed. 
Defects  of  •  Japanese  self-esteem  has  just 
Japanese  ^^^^  mentioned  ;  it  often  be- 
Character  ^^^^^  insufferable  arrogance, 
showing  plainly,  through  a  cloak  of  false 
modesty,  "  the  pride  that  apes  humihty." 
This  arrogance,  displayed  chiefly  towards 
foreigners,  but  also  by  Japanese  in  official 
positions  towards  their  fellow-countrymen 
of  inferior  rank,  is  intimately  connected 
with  another  national  failing,  excessive 
vanity.  It  is  less  noticeable  amongst 
sailors  and  soldiers  than  amongst  civil 
officials  of  corresponding  rank. 

Minor  failings  of  the  Japanese  are 
jealousy,  envy  of  those  who  achieve 
success,  and,  connected  with  these  faults, 


A    GROUP    OF    CIVIL    AND    MILITARY    OFFICIALS    IN    OLD    JAPAN 


443 


STREET    SCENE    IN 


a  great  love  of  gossip  and  a  readiness  to 
listen  to  slander,  or  to  disseminate  it. 

There  are,  finally,  two  charges  to  be 
examined  that  are  frequently  levelled  at 
the  Japanese  by  those  who  profess  to 
know  them  well — the  accusations  of 
immorality,  sexual  and  commercial.  The 
first  of  these  charges  may  be  disposed  of 
by  the  statement  that  the  Japanese  are 
about  as  moral  in  their  sexual  relations 
as  the  Latin  nations  of  Europe,  with  the 
advantage  slightly  in  favour  of  the 
Japanese.  What  has  given  them  an  evil 
repute  in  this  respect  is,  probably,  the 
fact  that  they  consider  as  natural,  and 
treat  accordingly,  certain  evils  that  the 
Northern  Occidental  peoples  affect  to 
ignore.  The  natural,  simple  life  led  by 
the  vast  majority  of  Japanese  pre- 
disposes them  to  take  a  natural,  sensible 
view  of  matters  that  the  less  primitive 
conditions  of  Western  civilisation  have 
imbued  with  an  objectionable 
significance.  They  see,  for  in- 
stance, no  harm  in  nudity 
where  it  is  unavoidable,  as  in 
bathing,  or  convenient,  as  in  the  perform- 
ance of  hard  work  in  hot  weather.  A 
Japanese  woman  will  feel  no  shame  at  being 
seen  naked  when  entering  or  leaving  the 
daily  bath,  but  would  strongly  object  to 
what  she  would  consider  the  gross  im- 
modesty of  exposing  a  considerable  surface 
of  her  body  in  Occidental  evening  dress. 

444 


Japanese 
Ideas  of 
Modesty 


VILLAGE    OF    OLD    JAPAN 


In  the  first  case,  the  nudity  is  looked  upon 

as  quite  natural ;   in  the  second,  as  useless 

and  provocative  of  pruriency. 

As  to  the  commercial  morality  of  the 

Japanese,  it  is  necessary  to  observe  the 

great  difference  that  exists  between  the 

position,    in    this    respect,    of    Japanese 

State  institutions,  financial  and  commercial 

-.    .  corporations,  and  firms  of  the 

„           .  first    rank    on    the  one    hand. 

Honour  m  j    j.i                 .                   r    i.      j 

^  and  the  great  mass  of  traders 

Commerce  ,,         ",,             ~,         y             •    , 

on  the  other,  ihe  Imperial 
Japanese  Government,  municipal  corpora- 
tions, and  the  great  financial  institutions 
and  industrial  and  commercial  associa- 
tions under  State  control  (such  as  subsi- 
dised steamship  companies),  have  always 
met  their  obligations  with  scrupulous 
fidelity  and  are  likely  to  continue  to  do  so. 
With  them  the  national  honour  is  con- 
sidered at  stake  ;  it  is  certain  that  the 
last  Japanese  will  part  with  his  last 
garment  sooner  than  involve  the  national 
credit  in  disgrace  by  failure  to  meet  the 
nation's  engagements  towards  the  foreign 
creditor. 

It  is,  unfortunately,  quite  otherwise  in 
the  case  of  the  great  bulk  of  the  trading 
classes.  There  are,  in  Japan,  a  number  of 
first-class  firms,  some  of  them  established 
for  centuries,  whose  reputation  is  above 
reproach;  but  between  these  and  the 
majority  of  the  merchants  a  great  gulf  is 
fixed.    It  must  be  remembered  that,  until 


IN  THE  OUTSKIRTS  OF  YEDO.  NOW  TOKIO,  THE  CAPITAL  OF  JAPAN 


the  beginning  of  the  New  Era,  in  the  early 
'seventies  of  the  nineteenth  century,  the 
trading  community  formed  the  lowest  of 
the  four  classes,  then  sharply  and  immut- 
ably divided  one  from  the  other,  com- 
posing that  part  of  the  Japanese  nation 
P  that  had  full  civil  rights  (below 

_,."_,  them  stood  only  the  Eta,  who 
Old    Class  J  1        •      J 

^.  .  .  carried    on    despised    occupa- 

Divisions        ,.  ,    .        ^       .        .       T 

tions,  involving  contamination 

by  contact  with   dead    bodies,  human   or 

animal,  and  the  outcast  Hi-nin). 

The  nation  was  divided  into  Shi,  the 
nobility  and  gentry,  the  mihtary,  scholarly 
and  administrative  class  ;  No,  the  agri- 
culturists ;  Ko,  the  craftsmen,  with  whom 
the  artists  were  counted  ;  and  Sho,  the 
traders,  placed  below  farmers  and  handi- 
craftsmen as  non-producers. 

The  natural  consequence  of  this  low 
place  in  the  social  scale  was  a  lack  of  self- 
respect  on  the  part  of  those  engaged  in 
commerce  and  finance  that  led  them  to 
be  unmindful  of  their  good  repute.  Trade 
and  finance  were  looked  upon  by  the 
majority  as  occupations  unworthy  of  a 
gentleman  and  beneath  the  callings 
of  the  peasant  and  the  workman  ;  every 
trick  was  considered  excusable  when 
practised  by  the  merchant,  whose  whole 
business  was  looked  upon  as  a  sort  of 
warfare,  in  which  cunning  stratagem  could 
be  legitimately  employed  to  the  end  of 
personal  gain,  a  purpose  appearing  most 


unworthy  to  the  classes  swayed  by  the  old 
knightly  spirit.  The  evil  effects,  on  a  class 
as  on  an  individual,  of  a  bad  reputation 
and  consequent  public  contempt  have, 
unfortunately,  outlived  the  abolition  of 
the  old  social  divisions.  The  Japanese 
merchants  and  bankers  no  longer  form  a 
separate  and  despised  class ;  the  gentry, 
even  members  of  the  aristocracy,  are 
engaging  every  day  more  and  more  in 
financial,  industrial  and  commercial  pur- 
suits, many  of  them  with  marked  success, 
yet  the  old  taint  adheres  to  the  bulk  of 
the  trading  community. 

There  are,  of  course,  many  strictly 
honourable  dealers  in  Japan,  even 
amongst  the  smaller  tradespeople  and 
retailers.  It  is  amongst  the  wholesale 
merchants  and  the  brokers  that  lapses 
from  the  straight  path  of  commercial 
integrity  are  still  frequent,  especially 
in  their  dealings  with  foreigners.  It 
is,  unfortunately,  still  the  case  that  an 
advantage  gained  over  the  foreigner,  even 

_^  _  .  by  the  most  shady  methods. 
The  Desire   •       i      i      i  ■ 

,  _  .  .  ,^  IS  looked  upon  as,  in  some 
to  Trick  the  ,-    '     i      •    .  i-i  ■ 

_.      .  way,  a  national  victory.     1  his 

Foreigner       j      i        ,  i  •    ,         r        • 

deplorable    point    of    view   is 

likely    to    prevail    as    long    as    Japanese 

nationalism  exists  in  its  extreme  form. 

The   Japanese   Government    has,   time 

after    time,    loudly    proclaimed,    by    the 

mouths   of   its   statesmen   at    home,   and 

its   representatives  abroad,  its  desire  to 

445 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


facilitate,  in  every  way,  the  introduction 
of  foreign  capital,  the  vital  influence  so 
urgently  required  for  the  realisation  of 
Japan's  bold  schemes  of  industrial  and 
commercial  development.  Strange  to  say, 
this  cordial  invitation,  though  energetic- 
ally responded  to  by  the  capitalists  of 
Europe,  especially  of  Britain,  and  by  those 
of  America,  has  not,  as  yet,  led 
apanese  ^^  ^j^^  investment  of  any  very 
National  j        i_i  •         t 

r-  considerable   sums    m      apan- 

ese  enterprises,  although,  as  is 
well-known,  the  Japanese  Government 
has  easily  borrowed  many  millions  sterling 
in  London,  New  York  and  Paris,  for 
purposes  of  State.  The  chief  obstacle  to 
the  investment  on  a  large  scale,  of 
foreign  capital  in  Japanese  enterprises  is 
to  be  found  in  the  fact  that,  forgetting 
that  capital  is,  after  all,  a  commodity, 
therefore  subject  to  the  laws  of  suppl)' 
and  demand,  the  Japanese  financial  and 
industrial  classes  do  not  realise  that  tlie 
capitalist,  being  virtually  the  seller,  con- 
trols the  price  of  his  property. 

A  mistaken  impression  appears  to 
prevail  in  Japan  that  foreign  capital  is 
obliged  to  find  an  outlet  in  the  Empire  of 
the  Rising  Sun  and  must,  therefore, 
submit  to  such  conditions  as  may  seem 
suitable  to  the  Japanese  and  accept  such 
security  as  the  Japanese  may  deem 
sufficient.  As  long  as  this  erroneous  view 
obtains,  there  can  be  no  considerable 
influx  of  foreign  money  into  the  coffers 
of  Japanese  industrial  and  commercial 
concerns.  Experience  is  proverbially  the 
best  teacher ;  the  dearth  of  funds  that  is 
certain  to  follow,  in  due  time,  the  abnormal 
and  feverish  activity  which  is  animating 
Japanese  economic  conditions, immediately 
after  the  successful  issue  of  the  great 
struggle  with  Russia,  will  undoubtedly 
induce  a  more  reasonable  appreciation  of 
the  circumstances.  Once  the  Japanese 
have  been  taught  by  experience  that  they 
must  regulate  their  demands  by  the  lowest 
.  terms  considered  acceptable 
^  ^,..?"*,    by    the    foreign    holders     of 

Qualities  of         -^    •.    ,  .  j  r.    ui 

^.     .  capital,  a  vast  and  profitable 

the  Japanese    ^    I  i  n      i-        u    r  iu 

field    will     he     Defore     those 

Occidental  capitalists  who  have  the  ad- 
vantage of  expert  advice  in  their  selection 
of  Japanese  investments. 

As  a  general  rule,  it  may  be  stated  that 
intercourse  with  the  people  of  Japan 
leaves  Occidentals  very  favourably  im- 
pressed with  the  social  qualities  of  the 
inhabitants  of  the  island  empire.     Their 

446 


exquisite  courtesy,  their  gentle  manners, 
and  the  thousand  ways  in  which  they 
demonstrate  that  kindness  of  heart  that 
lubricates  the  wheels  of  life's  machinery 
all  tend  to  make  ordinary,  everyday 
relations  with  Japanese  a  delightful  ex- 
perience. It  is  only  when  the  more 
serious  aspects  of  life  are  approached  that 
the  Occidental  begins  to  feel  the  wide 
divergence  between  his  point  of  view,  in 
nearly  every  important  matter,  and  that 
of  the  Japanese. 

It  is  exceedingly  difficult  to  specify 
with  exactitude  the  particular  feature 
of  the  Japanese  character  which  lies 
at  the  root  of  the  unfortunate  fact 
that  nearly  all  Occidentals  who  have 
had  serious  dealings  with  the  people  of 
Dai  Nippon  have  emerged  from  their 
experience  exasperated  and  often  dis- 
gusted. It  is  probable  that  want  of 
candour  is  the  trait  that  acts  as  the 
sharpest  irritant,  for  it  must  be  confessed 
that  frankness,  so  highly  prized  by 
Occidentals,  especially  by  those  of  the 
nations  that  "  push  the  world  along,"  is 
neither  appreciated  at  its  true  value  nor 
generally  practised  by  the  J  apa- 

f^ih  ^^^  nese.  The  very  nature  of  their 
J      ^  elaborate  courtesy  makes  them 

apancs  shrink  from  that  bluff  frank- 
ness which  obtains  amongst  Occidentals 
on  a  footing  of  intimate  friendship.  Even 
the  Japanese  mode  of  speech  is  a 
hindrance  to  direct  statement  of  fact ; 
a  Japanese,  asked  if  he  has  ever  been  in 
England,  will  reply,  in  his  own  tongue, 
"  Yes,"  and,  after  a  pause,  "  I  have  nevey 
visited  England."  He  would  not  deem  it 
polite  to  shock  his  questioner  by  a  direct 
negative  ! 

Another  peculiarity  of  the  Japanese 
character,  that  is  apt  to  loom  large  in 
Occidental  eyes  as  a  grave  national 
failing,  is  the  lack  of  the  spirit  of  grati- 
tude, as  it  is  understood  by  the  white 
races.  The  Japanese  have,  hitherto,  never 
failed  to  deal  out  fair  measure,  according 
to  the  letter  of  the  contract,  to  the 
numerous  Occidentals  whom  they  have 
employed,  as  advisers  and  instructors,  in 
adapting  Western  civilisation  to  the 
material  needs  of  their  re-organised 
empire ;  their  labours,  as  well  as  those 
of  friends  of  Japan  who  have  rendered 
voluntary,  unpaid  services,  have  also  been 
recognised  by  the  bestowal  of  marks  of 
Imperial  favour ;  but  it  is  doubtful  whether 
a  real  feeling  of  what  we  term  gratitude 


HISTORY    OF    THE    WORLD 


TYPICAL    JAPANESE    OF    THE    MIDDLE    CLASS 


has  ever  entered  the  hearts  of  the  nation 
towards  the  many  distinguished  men  who 
have  given  of  their  best  to  assist  in  the 
making  of  New   Japan,   or  to   spread   a 
knowledge  of  its  greatness.  This  doubt  does 
not  apply  to  the  Navy  and  Army ;  those 
gallant  forces,  keeping  the  sacred  fire  of 
chivalry   alight,   show  deep  gratitude   to 
the  British 
sailors     and 
European    sol- 
diers —  French 
and,      after 
them,    Ger- 
mans— who  in- 
structed   them 
in  the  modern 
art  of  war. 

Sy  m  pa  thy 
with  their  as- 
jiirations  is,  of 
course,  cordi- 
ally welcomed 

from    every    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^m^^^^&M^M^::^^"'^ 
quarter  by  the 
Japanese;  they 

are  delighted  to  receive  help  of  any  kind 
from  Occidental  friends  at  such  times  as, 
in  their  view,  render  such  assistance  or 
sympathy  necessary.  When  the  occasion 
has  passed,  and  they  feel  independent  of 
foreign  support,  they  not  only  cease  to 
make  any  effort  to  attract,  but  take  no 
pains  to  conceal  their  indifference  to  it. 
This  attitude,  induced  by  the  severely 
practical  nature  of  their  policy,  is  repug- 
nant to  Occidental  feeling,  and  has  caused 
the  accusation  to  be  brought  against  the 
Japanese  that  they  treat  their  foreign 
friends  "like  lemons,  to  be  thrown  away 
once  the  juice  has  been  squeezed  out  of 
them." 

This  course  of  conduct  should  not  be 
judged  too  harshly;  it  should  be  remem- 
bered that  such  a  proud,  hypersensitive 
nation  is  ever  desirous  of  displaying  its 
independence,  and  is  consequently  averse 
to  appearing  to  sohcit  help  or  sympathy 
from  the  outside.  A  gifted  Frenchman, 
a  true  friend  of  Japan,  the  late  Felix 
Regamey,  several  of  whose  spirited  pictures 


-J 


of  Japan  are  reproduced  in  this  History, 
and    who    did   much   to    gain    sympathy 
for  that  country  amongst  his  compatriots 
at  a  time  when  they  were  little  inclined 
to  extend  it,  said  to  the  writer :  "  It  would, 
indeed,  be  a  pleasure  to  help  the  Japanese, 
but   they  will    not  let    one   help    them." 
It    is   noticeable    that    this    coolness    to- 
wards    foreign 
sympathy      is 
usually    coinci- 
dent     with     a 
period    of    na- 
tional   elation, 
consequent    on 
the   victory  of 
Japanese  arms, 
or  the   obtain- 
ing    of      some 
solid    advan- 
tage by  Japan- 
ese diplomacy. 
Reviewing 
impartially  the 
good   and    the 
bad    points    of 
the  Japanese  national  character,  one  must 
come  to  the  comforting  conclusion  that  its 
faults  are  likely  to  disappear,  or,  at  least, 
to  be  considerably  attenuated  in  the  future, 
as  Japan  enters  more  and  more  into  the 
active  life  of  the  family  of  nations.     The 
pressure    of    the    public    opinion    of    the 
vast  majority  of  civilised  mankind  must 
exercise   a   beneficial  influence    in    bring- 
ing   the     Japanese    gradually    into    line 
with  ourselves  where   the   points  of  view 
are  still   too   widely  divergent    to    admit 
of    cordial     co-operation    between    them 
and   Occidentals.     The  virtues   now  pre- 
eminently Japanese  may,  indeed  probably 
will,    suffer    to    a  certain    extent    in    the 
process  ;    it  is  the  writer's  firm  conviction 
that    enough   of    them    will     remain     to 
enable   the   Japanese   to    accomplish   the 
glorious  destiny  towards  which  they  are 
marching.     Their  patriotism,  their  valour, 
their     thoroughness,     their     wisdom     in 
matters  of  national  moment,  are  of  the 
virtues  that  make  nations  great. 

Arthur  Diosy 


-^^    .^    ^' 


448 


o 


University  of  California 

SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 

405  Hilgard  Avenue,  Los  Angeles,  CA  90024-1388 

Return  this  material  to  the  library 

from  which  it  was  borrowed. 


mm  m 

JtlN  2  2  1998' 

3RLF 
2  WEEK  LQ4^f 


mifi 


tSEC  Q  5  2003 


SflLF 


PK LOAN 


Series  9482 


UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 

mil  PIP  I  'iii'i't'iTifir 


D    000  797  497    5 


i^^ 


Mi 


.iT^'ifJ 


